Karshkovia
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| Republic of Karshkovia | |
 | 
|
| National Flag | Coat of Arms |
| Motto: Liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable - | |
 Complete Map of Karshkovia | |
| Region | Northland |
|---|---|
| Capital (and largest city) | Zostar |
| Official languages | English, Russian, Karshka |
| Demonym | Karshkovian |
| Government | Democratic Socialist |
| - President - Prime Minister | Vladimir Radchenko Valentina Borofsky |
| Formation | |
| - Independence | |
| - Declared | January 21, 1992 |
| - Finalized | April 10, 1992 |
| Area | |
| - Total | 2,274,900 km² |
| - Water (%) | 1.7 |
| Population | |
| - 2008 estimate | 1,579,000,000 |
| - Density | 694.09/km² |
| GDP (PPP) | 2008 |
| - Total | US$19.368 trillion |
| - Per capita | US$12,700 |
| HDI (2008) | ▲ 0.802 (high) |
| Currency | Ruble (RUB) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 to +6 |
| Internet TLD | .ka |
| Calling code | +701
|
| ISO code | KARSH
|
| Sporting code | KAR
|
Karshkovia, officially the Republic of Karshkovia, is a coastal country located on the large landmass of Northland in the Pacific Ocean. It has a territory of over 2,727,300 km² and is bordered by three nations to the North, East and West. The country also borders on a significant part of the ocean.
Vast in size, the land in Karshkovia is very diverse in types of terrain with flatlands, steepes, taigas, rock-canyons, hills, mountains, and snowcapped mountains. Karshkovia's population density varies greatly. It is less than 6 people per square kilometer (15 per sq. mi.) in rural areas while in the metropolitan areas, it can be as great as 1500 people per square kilometer. The total population has risen since independence with the greatest influx from immigrating ethnic Russians since the dissolution of the Soviet States.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Karshka Zazakh
Karshkovia has been inhabited since the Stone Age as the region's climate and terrain are best suited for nomadic people practicing pastoralism. Historians believe that humans domesticated the goat and horse in the region's vast steppes. While ancient cities such as Minski, Rostov, and Zostar had long served as important way-stations for goods imported and exported from other continents, real political consolidation only began with the Volsta invasion of the early fourteenth century AD. Under the Volsta Empire, administrative districts were established and these eventually came under the Karshka Zazakh.
Throughout this period traditional nomadic life ceased and the farming/livestock-based economy turned to trade, though as a paradox since the Karshkas at this time were isolationists. Nevertheless, the region was the focus of ever-increasing disputes between the native Karshkas and the neighboring nation-states over waterway and port rights. From these disputes Karshkas grew a reputation of fierce, bloodthirsty people. Historians believe they were one of the first cultures to allow women to fight alongside of men in battle.
During the 17th century Karshkas fought a federation of tribes from the mountain region in the western edge of present-day Karshkovia. After the tribals defeat, they were absorbed into Karshkas culture. They brought with them knowledge of mining and metal smithing the Karshkas did not have. It was also this time that the Karshka nation was formed and formal national boarders introduced. They returned to an isolationist nation with closed borders and no contact with outside nations until the late 19th century.
[edit] Soviet States
In the 20th century, Karshka received an influx of Soviet refuges fleeing the People's Revolution of 1917 and fiercely fought off numerous attempts by the Soviets to overtake the nation. In 1938, Karshka's King Barkovitz II was assassinated by pro-Communist rebels and Soviet troops seized control of the capital city of Zostar, and installed a communist government. Karshkovian cities were renamed except for the capital, Zostar, the country was renamed Karshkovia, and the Soviets enforced the Russian language in all schools and governmental organizations. Soviet efforts to impose it's system aroused the extreme resentment of the ethnic Karshka people, and by early 1940 a national movement sought to preserve the native language and identity by resisting the attempts of the Soviet Empire to assimilate and stifle them.
The Soviet States began steps at that time to systematically assassinate any person they found was associated with this movement. They also banned all public and private worship, making it punishable by death if caught. Ever increasing amounts of Slavic settlers began colonizing the wide open territory of present-day Karshkovia under the supervision of the Soviet States.
Native Karshkovians were driven from their land to make room for the Slavic settlers, creating animosity between the peoples. Massive hunger led to unrest and between 1940 and 1942 the Karshkovian population declined by 25% due to starvation, violence and mass emigration through the mountains to neighboring nations. Many renowned writers, thinkers, poets, politicians and historians were killed by Soviet orders, both as part of the repression and as a methodical pattern of suppressing Karshka identity and culture.
Karshkovia was the location of some of the Soviet's largest labor camps and in 1943 experience population inflows of millions of exiled peoples from other parts of the Soviet States. Many were deportation victims due to their ethnic background or beliefs.
[edit] Unrest
The Zostar Uprising occurred in 1944 when native Karshkovians attacked Soviet and Cossack neighborhoods, killing Soviet sympathizers and officials. The Soviet revenge was merciless as a military force drove over 400,000 Karshkovians from their homes in the middle of winter, giving them little warning or chance to prepare, to the mountains. Parts of Zostar were leveled as the people fled. Only 150,000 were able to make it into the neighboring nations to the west and north west, and when 40,000 returned late in the spring, nearly all were slaughtered by Soviet forces.
The Karshkovian Soviet Social Republic (SSR) contributed four national divisions to the Soviet States' various war efforts, and the period of 1940 to 1950 marked a sharp increase in industrialization and increased mineral extraction in support of the war efforts. By 1951, Karshkovia was one of the Soviet States' powerhouse industrial states, contributing a significant percentage of the total production output of the Soviet States. In 1952, discovery of Uranium in the Karshka Mountain Range led a Soviet initiative labeled the "Power Mountains" program to mine that Uranium, hoping to turn Karshkovia into a major source of Uranium for the Soviet States. This lead to mixed results, as the roads leading up the mountain mines needed to be rebuilt from the base-up to handle the heavy equipment, the harsh Karshkovia winter left many passes unusable until spring and frequent avalanche prevented winter mining from occurring.
Along with later modernization in the 1960s, the development of the Karshkovian caviar industry created an economical boon for the Soviets and Karshkovian Caviar was labeled "Black Gold" inside and outside the Soviet States, and is still a very highly sought after, expensive commodity.
In 1967, the Doysha Cosmodrome was built and became a secondary site for the Soviet's space program, though it was later abandoned in the late 1970's.
Through the 1970's, growing tensions within Soviet society led to a demand for political and economical reforms, which came to a head in the early 1980s. In December, 1987, mass demonstrations by young ethnic Karshkovians, later referred to as the Barnaul Riots, took place to protest the replacement of the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Karshkovian SSR, Ledvisk Konaye with Gradst Kolbinsky from the Soviet SFSR. Government Troops suppressed the unrest. Several people were killed and most demonstrators were jailed, later sent to heavy labor camps. In the days of waning Soviet rule, discontent continued to grow until open revolt began in the early 1990's.
[edit] Independence
In early 1990, an incident involving the Karshkovian gymnastics team and Soviet troops in Miniski set off nationwide protests which quickly spiraled into a full blown revolution. Karshkovians in the Soviet military had mixed reactions to the revolution from support to denouncing the rebels, however despite this many stationed inside Karshkovia helped the rebels capture military assets, including ICBM silos.
To prevent further loss of equipment, the Soviet Union detained all Karshkovian military personnel which had not defected to the rebels. Some of these military personnel are still being held today.
After a year of bloody struggle, the Soviets withdrew troops following an abortive coup attempt in August 1991 and the subsequent dissolution of the Soviet States. Karshkovia declared it's independence on January 21, 1992. It was the last of the Soviet States to declare independence.
The years following independence were been marked by significant reforms to the Soviet-style economy and political monopoly on power. Under Nutan Nabayev, who initially came to power in 1989 as the head of the Communist Party of Karshkovia and was eventually elected President in 1992, Karshkovia made significant progress toward developing a market economy. The country has enjoyed significant economic growth since 2000, partly due to its large oil, gas, and mineral reserves
In 2004, the unaffiliated dark-horse candidate, President Vladimir Radchenko won the popular vote in a surprising landslide victory. The start of his Presidency marked a new period in Karshkovia as for the first time in it's history Karshkovia opened her borders to foreigners and started to expand her influence beyond its national boarders. His marriage to an ex-soviet air force lieutenant, Valentina Borofsky, meet with mixed reactions. Radchenko addressed the nation on his feelings for his wife, pointing out the forced relocation of many Russian citizens during Soviet rule, the need to embrace all people equally as brothers who all loved the nation as their home country, and the rejection of Karshka, Cassock, or Soviet ethnic background. He stated Karshkovia had always been a crucible of people and to that effect was dissolving ethnic background and renamed all people Karshkovians first and only. After this speech, an upwelling of support formed and the "Healing and Unity" movement began.
As of 2007, independent observers have reported that cross marriage between ethnic Karshkas, Cassocks, and Soviets is common and all but a few have accepted the unity movement. Foreigners have reported even in outlying towns and villages, Karshkovians are very friendly and helpful which is a marked change from their isolationist past.
[edit] Geography
With an area of 2.7 million square Kilometers (1.05 million square miles), Karshkovia shares large boarders of 6,846 kilometers with it's northern neighbor nation, 2,203 kilometers with it's western neighbor nation, and 379 kilometers with it's northeastern neighbor.
The terrain extends west to east from the Karshka Mountains to the eastern seaboard, and north to south from the plains of northern Karshkovia to the southern seaboard.
The Karshka Steppe, with an area of around 804,500 square kilometers, occupies one third of the country. The Steppe is characterized by large areas of grassland suitable for fair agriculture, with very fertile soil. The steppe is nicknamed "The green desert". Important rivers include the Volga, the Krona, the Vyehegda and the Severnaya. The country's only lake is Lake Trysh, and it empties into the river Trysh. The eastern part of the country consists of the flat, Severnaya Valley, the bottom of a glacial Lake Malov. It's fertile soil, drained by the meandering Severnaya River flowing southward into the Bay of Barnaul, supports a very large agriculture industry. Trysh, the largest natural lake in the nation, is also found in the east.
The western half of the nation consists of the Karshka Mountains and "Badlands" just at the foot of the Karshka Mountains. The nation's highest point is Mount Vyoska, rising an impressive 5541 meters above sea level. The "Badlands" are abundant in fossil fuels, including crude oil (sweet and light sweet), and lignite coal. The Karshka mountains are abundant in mineral deposits including Gold, Silver, Manganese, Chrome Ore, Iron, Nickel Cobalt, Copper, Molybdenum, Lead, Zinc, Bauxite, and Uranium. All are found in rich, available quantities.
[edit] Climate
The climate of Karshkovia is quite diverse depending on the location. Karshkovia endures temperature extremes characteristic of it's continental climate, with hot summers and cold winters. The record low and high temperatures are -51.1°C and 49°C respectively. Meteorological events include rain, snow, hail, blizzards, polar fronts, tornadoes, thunderstorms and high-velocity straight-line winds.
Springtime flooding is a relatively common event in the Severnaya Valley, due to the Vogla and the Vyehegda emptying into the Severnaya. The spring melt and the eventual runoff typically begin swelling the rivers, taxing the Severnaya.
[edit] Government and politics
- Main article: Politics of Karshkovia
Karshkovia has a bicameral Parliament, made up of the lower house (Govail) and upper house (the Senate). The people popularly elect 60 seats in the Govail, six per district. The Senate has 20 members all selected from a popular vote of the people from Karshkovia's 10 principal administrative divisions, two per district. The president appoints the remaining five senators.
On 8 January 2004 the unaffiliated dark-horse candidate, Vladimir Radchenko, the son of a Karshka native and a Soviet Soldier, won the popular vote in a surprising landslide victory. The electoral commission announced that he had won over 93% of the vote. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Northland (OSCN) concluded the election did meet all international standards. Xinhua News Agency reported that Thiali observers, responsible in overseeing 250 polling stations in Zostar, found that voting in those polls was conducted in a "transparent and fair" manner.
On 10 January 2004, Valentina Borofsky, former lieutenant in the Russian Air Force and wife of Vladimir Radchenko, was named Prime Minister of Karshkovia. This was the first time a non-Karshka was appointed to this position.
Elections to the Govail in July 2007 yielded a lower house dominated by the pro-business Trade Union party. Later in August, the Senate also yielded a Trade Union Dominated Parliament. Two other parties also considered sympathetic to the president, including the pro-government Asar party, and the People's Democratic Party have the minority seats in the Govail and Senate, respectively.
Opposition parties, including the Socialist and Communist Parties, which were officially registered and competed in the elections, won a single seat in the Govail during elections.
[edit] Foreign Relations and Military
- Main article: Military of Karshkovia
Since independence in 1991, Karshkovia has pursued what is known as the multidimensional foreign policy. This policy is characterized by the pursuit of peaceful relations and the principle of non-intervention in internal affairs. As a result of these policies, Karshkovia maintains ties with a wide variety of countries spanning the vast political spectrum.
The armed forces of Karshkvoia exist primarily for the purposes of self-defense, an uses mainly soviet technology. After independence, the Karshkovian military slowly built its strength and now has the highest trained personnel with state-of-the-art equipment of any Northland nations.
Karshkovia's military is governed by the Ministry of Defense and comprise the Karshkovia Army, the Karshkvoian Navy, the Karshkovian Air Force, and the Karshkovian Space Command.
[edit] Economy
The government of Karshkovia plans to triple or quadruple it's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2009, as compared to 2000. GDP growth has been stable in the last five years, at a rate higher than 10%. Buoyed by high world crude oil, Molybdenum and Bauxite prices, GDP growth figures were in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005: 9.8%, 13.2%, 9.5%, 9.2%, 9.4%, and 9.2%, respectively. Other major exports of Karshkovia include six distinctive types of Caviar, automobiles, fish, grains, textile, and livestock. Experts forecasts that Karshkovia would become the world's leading exporter of Uranium by the year 2010 if they were to open international trade of the ore to other nations, which could double to triple the GDP within a few months.
As of late December 2003, Karshkovia's gross foreign debt was about $22.9 billion. Total governmental debt was $4.2 billion. There has been a noticeable reduction in the ratio of debt to GDP observed in past years; the ratio of total governmental debt to GDP in 2000 was 21.7%, in 2001 it was 17.5%, and in 2002 it was 15.4%.
The upturn in economic growth, combined with the results of earlier tax and financial sector reforms, has dramatically improved government finances from the 1999 budget deficit level of 3.5% of GDP to a deficit of 1.2% of GDP in 2003. Government revenues grew from 19.8% of GDP in 1999 to 22.6% of GDP in 2001, but decreased to 16.2% of GDP in 2003. In 2000, Karshkovia adopted a new tax code in an effort to consolidate these gains. On November 29, 2003 the Law on Changes to Tax Code was adopted, which increased rate for the wealthiest. The value added tax fell from 16% to 15%, the normal social tax from 21% to 20%, and the personal income tax from 30% to 20%. (On July 7, 2006 the personal income tax was reduced even further to a flat rate of 5% for personal income in the form of dividends and 10% for other personal income.) Karshkovia furthered its reforms by adopting a new land code on June 20, 2003, and a new customs code on April 5, 2003.
Caviar is currently the leading economic sector, but may change with the opening of international sales of Uranium. Production of crude oil and natural gas condensate in Karshkovia amounted to 61.2 million tons in 2003, which was 8.6% more than in 2002. Karshkovia raised oil and gas condensate exports to 54.3 million tons in 2003, 13% higher than in 2002. Gas production in Karshkovia in 2003 amounted to 23.9 billion cubic meters, up 22.7% compared to 2002, including natural gas production of 10.3 billion cubic meters ; Karshkovia holds about 30 billion tons of proven recoverable oil reserves and 20,000 cubic kilometers of gas. Industry analysts believe that planned expansion of oil production, coupled with the development of new fields, will enable the country to produce as much as 4 million barrels per day by 2015, lifting Karshkovia into the ranks of the world's top oil-producing nations. Karshkovia's 2003 oil exports were valued at more than $17 billion, representing 55% of overall exports and 24% of the GDP. Major oil and gas fields and their recoverable oil reserves are Tengiza with 14 billion barrels; Karachaga with 16 billion barrels and 1,350 km³ of natural gas; and Kashan with 14 to 15 billion barrels.
Karshkovia instituted an ambitious pension reform program in 1998. As of January 1, 2005, the pension assets were about $4.1 billion. There are 16 saving pension funds in the republic. The State Accumulating Pension Fund, the only state-owned fund, could be privatized as early as 2009. The country's unified financial regulatory agency oversees and regulates the pension funds. The pension funds' growing demand for quality investment outlets triggered rapid development of the debt securities market. Pension fund capital is being invested almost exclusively in corporate and government bonds, including Government of Karshkovian Sapientia bonds. The Karshkovian banking system is developing rapidly. The banking system's capitalization now exceeds $1 billion. The National Bank has introduced deposit insurance in its campaign to strengthen the banking sector. Several major foreign banks have branches in Karshkovia, including ABC AMORAL, Citibank, and HSBC. Raiffeisen Zentralbank and UniCredit have both recently entered the Karshkovia's financial services market through acquisitions and stake building.
[edit] Agriculture
Agriculture accounted for 13.6% of Karshkovia's GDP in 2003. Grains and livestock are the most important agricultural commodities. Agricultural land occupies much land in Karshkovia. The available agricultural land consists of 235,000 square kilometres of arable land and 619,000 square kilometers of pasture and hay land. Chief livestock products are Caviar, dairy products, leather, meat, and wool. The country's major crops include wheat, barley, cotton, and rice. Wheat exports, a major source of hard currency, rank among the leading commodities in Karshkovia's export trade. In 2003 Karshkovia harvested 17.6 million tons of grain in gross, 2.8% higher compared to 2002. Karshka agriculture still has many environmental problems from mismanagement during its years in the Soviet States. Some Karshka wine is produced in the mountains to the west of Rostov.
[edit] Natural Resources
Karshkovia has a rich, abundant supply of accessible mineral and fossil fuel resources. Development of petroleum, natural gas, and mineral extraction has attracted most of the over $40 billion in foreign investment in Karshkovia since 1993 and accounts for some 57% of the nation's industrial output (or approximately 13% of gross domestic product). According to some estimates, Karshkovia could have the second largest uranium, chromium, lead, and zinc reserves, the third largest manganese reserves, the fifth largest copper reserves, and ranks in the top ten for coal, iron, silver and gold. It is also a limited exporter of diamonds and potassium.
In total, there are 180 deposits with over 3.7 billion tons of petroleum. Oil explorations have shown that the deposits on the south shore are only a small part of a much larger deposit. It is said that 10.5 billion tons of oil and 2.5 trillion cubic meters of gas could be found in that area. Overall the estimate of Karshkovia's oil deposits is 20.1 billion tons. However, there are only 3 refineries within the country, situated in Odesay, Volograd, and Pechora. These are not capable of processing the total crude output so much of it is exported.
[edit] Demographics
Karshkovia is a trilingual country: the Karshka language, spoken by 64.4% of the population, has the status of the "state" language, while Russian, which is spoken by almost all Karshkovians, is declared the "official" language, while English is used routinely in business even between natives.
The 1990s were marked by the emigration of many of the country's Soviets and Volga Soviets, a process that began in the 1970s; this was a major factor in giving the autochthonous Karshkas a majority along with higher Karshka birthrates. In the early twenty first century, Karshkovia has become one of the leading nations in international marriages, as there are 4.3 women per man in the nation. This has recently sparked some criticism in the Parliament of Karshkovia, due to the concerns about safety and treatment of the women abroad and the questions regarding the low level of male population in Karshkovia.
In 2006, Karshkovia Parliament passed into law a bill which has international men (and women) go through a series of tests and interviews before their fiancee's' are given permission to marry and live outside of Karshkovia.
[edit] Religion
No truly accurate data exists about religion in Karshkovia. In 1941, the Soviet Union banned all public and private worship, making it punishable by death if caught. After independence, Karshkovia lifted that ban however there were no religious leaders to organize churches. A poll conducted in 2007 showed that Christianity is the largest religion in Karshkovia, followed by Russian Orthodox Christianity. The country has historically hosted a wide variety of ethnic groups with varying religions.
Tolerance to other societies has become a part of the Karshkovia culture. The foundation of an independent republic, following the disintegration of the Soviet States, has launched a great deal of changes in every aspect of people’s lives. Religiosity of the population, as an essential part of any cultural identity, has undergone dynamic transformations as well.
After decades of suppressed culture, the people were feeling a great need for exhibiting their ethnic identity – in part through religion. Quantitative research shows that for the first years after the establishment of the new laws, waiving any restrictions on religious beliefs and proclaiming full freedom of confessions, the country experienced a huge spike in religious activity of its citizens. After opening themselves to carefully screened international outreach religious groups, hundreds of churches, mosques, synagogues and other religious structures were built in a the last two years.
All represented religions benefited from increased number of members and facilities. Many confessions that were absent before independence made their way into the country, appealing to hundreds of people. The government supported this activity, and has done its best to provide equality among all religious organizations and their followers.
Radical religious organizations, despite a popular belief, are of little danger to the national security. The few organizations that have been uncovered are being investigated thoroughly by the police. Cults, such as Scientology, are banned from the country because of their intolerance for other religions and their avocations of violence on nonbelievers or critics. Therefore, Karshkovia has a very diverse, stable, and safe religious background – a truly exceptional occurrence.
[edit] Education
Education is universal and mandatory through to the secondary level and the adult literacy rate is 99.8%. Education consists of three main educational phases: primary education, basic general education and senior level education divided into continued general education and professional education. (Primary education is preceded by one year of preschool education.) These three levels of education can be followed in one institution or in different ones (e.g. primary school, then secondary school). Recently, several secondary schools, specialized schools, magnet schools, gymnasiums, lyceums, linguistic and technical gymnasiums, have been founded. Secondary professional education is offered in special professional or technical schools, lyceums or colleges and vocational schools.
At present, there are universities, academies, and institutes, conservatories, higher schools and higher colleges. There are three main levels: basic higher education that provides the fundamentals of the chosen field of study and leads to the award of the Bachelor's degree; specialized higher education after which students are awarded the Specialist's Diploma; and scientific-pedagogical higher education which leads to the Master's Degree. Postgraduate education leads to the Kandidat Nauk (Candidate of Sciences) and the Doctor of Sciences. With the adoption of the Laws on Education and on Higher Education, a private sector has been established and several private institutions have been licensed.
The Education Ministry of Karshkovia runs the highly successful "Bolashak Programme", which annually selects approximately three thousand exceptional school and university graduates and sponsors their undergraduate or postgraduate education in institutions abroad, including the prestigious Oxbridge and Ivy League universities. The terms of the programme include compulsory return to Karshkovia for at least five years of employment by the State or in international organizations. The objective of the programme is to provide an opportunity for the most talented students from Karshkovia to receive high-caliber education, enabling them to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to become the future leaders in certain key fields such as economics, technology, public policy, engineering, science and medicine.
[edit] Culture
- Main article: Culture of Karshkovia
Before the Soviet colonization, the Karshkas had a well-articulated culture based on their nomadic pastoral economy. Although Christianity and Islam was introduced to most of the Karshkas in the fifteenth century, the religions were not fully assimilated until much later. As a result, they coexisted with earlier elements of Tengrili; A traditional Karshka belief that held that separate spirits inhabited and animated the earth, sky, water, and fire, as well as domestic animals. To this day, particularly honored guests in rural settings are treated to a feast of freshly killed lamb. Such guests are sometimes asked to bless the lamb and to ask its spirit for permission to partake of its flesh. Besides lamb, many other traditional foods retain symbolic value in Karshka culture.
Traditional moral values of Karshkovians are respect of the elders and hospitality to strangers.
In the national cuisine, livestock meat can be cooked in a variety of ways and is usually served with a wide assortment of traditional bread products. Refreshments often include black tea and traditional milk-derived drinks. Vodka is also a very common refreshment mainly seen in major cities. A traditional Karshka dinner involves a multitude of appetizers on the table, followed by a soup and one or two main courses.
Because livestock was central to the Karshkovians' traditional lifestyle, most of their nomadic practices and customs relate in some way to livestock. Karshkas have historically been very affectionate about horse-riding. Traditional curses and blessings invoked disease or fecundity among animals, and good manners required that a person ask first about the health of a man's livestock when greeting him and only afterward inquire about the human aspects of his life. Even today many Karshkovians express interest in equestrianism and horse-racing.
Karshkovia is now home to a growing number of prominent contributors to literature, science and philosophy.
Karshkovia has developed itself as a growing sports-force on the world arena in the following fields: boxing, chess, skiing, gymnastics, cycling, horse-riding, triathlon, Greco-Roman wrestling, billiards.
Karshkovia features a lively music culture, evident in massive popularity of superstar, Aliya. Zostar is considered to be the musical capital of the developing world. After opening their borders, Karshkovians have enjoyed concerts by well-known artists such as Pearl Jam, Royal Crown Review, Aerosmith, Pantera, Coldplay, Arid, Hadley, Rammstein, Xzibit, and Prodigy among others. Raves and nightclubs are very popular for Karshkovians between 18 and 30, with international artist from the electronica genre in great demand.
The Parliament is considering the introduction of Latin alphabet for use in Karshkovian language to replace Cyrillic. The reasons that are popularly cited are cultural considerations and the nature of the Karshka language. However, the imposition of the Latin alphabet in Karshkovia would involve massive costs of translation and replacement of the vast Karshkovian literature.
The length of a woman's hair indicates her level in society and rules concerning this are strictly followed, even in major cities. Citizens from other nations though are not subject to this cultural observance.
