Lindenholt

Lindenholt, pronounced, officially the Kingdom of Lindenholt, is a medium-sized unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy located in Western Vestea. The roughly 73 million Lindians live in one of the country's nine provinces which border Umbrellya and micro? to the south, ? to the east, ? to the north and to the west, separated by the ?-sea lies Nordal.

The country's capital and largest city is Artwingen, with the second and third largest cities being Stokfort and Dorningen respectively. The three cities host some of the largest sea ports in the world, as the rivers on which they lie are considered to be the lifeline of the Western Vestean hinterland.

By virtue of its expansive river systems, Lindenholt has a long history of trade that ranges from medieval trading leagues and a global colonial empire to modern times, where it is considered a key economy within the Vestean Union. Another major theme of Lindian history is that of innovation and progressive thought, which was a key factor in the nation's unification during the Fifteen Years' War.

Today Lindenholt boasts a highly-developed market economy and ranks in the top ten largest economies of the world. Lindenholt is member of Vestean Union, the Aureizone, org and org. It's high standard of living combined with fully legalised abortion, prostitution, euthanasia, same-sex marriage, a liberal drug policy and extensive civil rights and liberties underline the nation's liberal character and complement it's high standard of living.



Etymology
A forested area stretching from the Brusseland marshes in the west to the eastern bank of the Sonnae river was known to the !Romans as Tilia Silvestris (lit.  forest). While the linden tree was found in Lindenholt at this time, nothing in the historic record suggests that the tree was overly represented in its forested areas. Instead, this etymology likely traces its history to decorative woodcarving art and shields made from by the Tilian tribes inhabiting the area.

After the fall of the Roman Empire and during the Early Middle Ages, the meaning of Tilia Silvestris had come to encompass most of what is considered modern-day Lindenholt. It was also during this time that the literal old- translation of the name gained popularity among its rulers and inhabitants when referring to the  realm north of Umbrellia.

Demographics
The National Bureau for Statistics (Rijksbureau voor Statistiek) counted that on 1 January 2016 Lindenholt had a population of 73,453,603. Of those 33,6 million people live in one of the thirty largest cities' metropolitan areas. Lindenholt's population density is around 179 people per square kilometre, although it should be noted that this figure is an average for the entire country. In reality the western provinces of Lindenholt are much more densely populated than the north and west, which are largely rural.

In 1900 Lindenholt had a population of around 34 million people. Over the past 100 years the population had almost doubled, as in the year 2000 Lindenholt reached a population of almost 70 million. In 2015 the National Bureau for Statistics registered a birth rate of 13 births per 1000 inhabitants. Coupled with a positive migration rate, Lindenholt's population has an annual growth rate of 0.6%.

According to the National Bureau for Statistics there are 7,8 million. According to estimates of the Lindian LGBTQ movement, there are around 3.8 million self-proclaimed members of the community.

Language
Lindenholt's national language is. Schools across the country teach and instruct students in the language's standardised variant. Standard Lindian is predominantly spoken in the urbanised west, whereas a dialect continuum exists in more rural parts of the country. These dialects are collectively known as plat (lit. flat) and are used in informal communication with community members. Due to the widespread use of Standard Lindian in the media, official communications and schools, the overwhelming majority of platspeakers are fully fluent in the Standardised language. Over the past years some dialects have come under threat of extinction. While speakers of several of these dialects have made efforts to gain official recognition, such efforts have yet to amount to any recognition by the Lindian government.

The National Bureau for Statistics' census reports that 96% of the population has an at least intermediary grasp of the Lindian language. The same census reports that around 38% of Lindian above the age of eighteen were conversationally proficient in, most of them centred in areas bordering Umbrellia. is the most spoken foreign language, with 85% of Lindians above the age of eighteen reporting conversational proficiency.

Religion


Irreligiousness, atheism and agnosticism are on the rise in Lindenholt, and form the largest religious group with nearly 56% of the population declaring themselves as one of the three aforementioned groups. Historically, up until the 1960's, the vast majority of Lindians were either or. Traditionally, the Sonnae river forms a rough border between the Calvinist north and Catholic south, although pockets of both denominations can be found far from the "border". Heintsbergen lies completely north of the Sonnae river, yet it is still considered to be a traditionally Catholic province.

While Lindenholt used to be a majority Calvinist nation up until the 1950's, the shift towards irreligiousness that took place over the course of the late 20th century was mainly centred in the Calvinist north. This has made Catholicism the largest Christian denomination in the country. Despite this, many persons that claim Catholicism as their faith are non-practising. The largest concentration of practising Catholics and Calvinists can be found in rural areas of the province of Elstergouw, where several landscapes within the province form the Lindian Biblebelt.

Starting during the industrialisation period, the urbanisation of Lindenholt led to cities with mixed religious and political backgrounds. Generally, the main zuilen (lit. ) of Lindian society were recognised to be the socialists, liberals, Catholics and Calvinists; with  forming a smaller pillar represented mostly in large cities. Each pillar created their own social institutions such as schools, universities, news papers, radio and television channels, political parties, stores, sport and hobby clubs, and trade unions. Despite often living in mixed neighbourhoods, members of each pillar only made use of their own pillar's social institutions. Marriages outside of one's own pillar were taboo, and there was little social interaction between members of differing pillars. This voluntary segregation is the pillarisation of Lindian society.

During the Second World War, members of each pillar had endured the horrors of the war together. This, along with the post-war generation of Lindians being wealthier, better educated and more outspoken eroded the boundaries set by the pillars. The rise of irreligiousness, the rebellious character of youth in the 1960's, a sense of unity instilled during the war and the coming of immigrants eventually brought a total end to pillarisation during the 1970's.

Lindenholt is a secular state, with strong influences from. This is a relic from the government's strict policy of religious neutrality during pillarisation. While the Lindian constitution guarantees freedom of religion, institutions funded or operated by the state act with a strict neutral religious character. Government employees are not allowed to display or otherwise disclose their religious affiliation. A similar situation exists in publicly funded education, where students and teachers may not visibly display their religious status through wearing religious symbols such as necklaces with a cross, headscarves or a. Religion has also come to be regarded as a strictly private matter in society, with those who adhere to a religion often only actively practising it at home, or at a place of worship.

Health
Lindenholt has a mixed healthcare system that unites aspects of universal socialised healthcare and market competition. Lindian healthcare is internationally considered to be of high quality and standards. It ranks high on areas such as patient rights and freedom.

Ordinarily, an extensive network of general practitioners are the first point of contact for the ill. They provide an easily accessible point for medical advice or treatment, and are tasked with referencing patients to a hospital or specialist. Principally, hospitals only treat patients that have gotten a reference from their general practitioner; this allows hospitals to treat those that have a need for more urgent or complex care. All hospitals (more formally, medical centres) in Lindenholt are open to the public, however there is a distinction between privately owned medical centres, public medical centres and academic medical centres.

Academic medical centres serve as teaching and research hospitals that are directly owned by an affiliated medical school or university. Generally they provide care to patients that are to undergo advanced medical procedures, suffer from rare conditions or have developed serious complications. Privately owned hospitals form the majority of Lindian medical centres, they provide care to any patient that is referred by a general practitioner. Treatments and care are provided for a profit, however the government bears responsibility for the quality and accessibility of the care. The central government reserves the right to buy out a private hospital when the requirements for quality, accessibility or patient satisfaction are at stake. At that point, these hospitals become public hospitals until the problems they face can be resolved. The vast majority of public hospitals are those that service rural areas, many of these hospitals are unable to turn a profit without sacrificing quality of care. Hence, the government accepts that they run at a loss while preserving their capacity and quality.

Obtaining an insurance plan from a private insurer is mandatory for all Lindians. The government mandates that the most basic insurance plan includes a wide-range of treatments and any acute medical procedure performed at any of the medical centres in Lindenholt. In addition to this, the government sets the maximum deductibles and maximum premiums for the most basic insurance plan. Similarly to any mandatory insurance, insurers are not allowed to discriminate based on age or risks such as pre-existing conditions or current health status. Because of competition and market forces, the average basic insurance has a monthly premium of around 130 Aurei (where the maximum for 2020 is 153 Aurei) and a deductible of 220 Aurei (with a maximum of 350).

Prehistoric Lindenholt
Archaeological records show that the area that is modern-day Lindenholt has been inhabited by humans for at least 40,000 years. It is evident that  groups roamed the country during the last ice age, and settled the land around 8000 BC. Lindenholt's geography required canoes for travel, as sediments left by glaciers during previous ice ages left a flat, low-lying landscape dotted with shallow lakes and bogs. These groups built canoes to fish and traverse marshlands and rivers.

Modern humans were not the only inhabitants of Lindenholt at this time. According to archaeological findings, had inhabited Lindenholt during the late. Evidence suggests they intermingled with the later arriving modern humans and died out somewhere between the end of the ice ages and the introduction of agriculture. It is widely believed that the overwhelming competition from modern humans is what drove the Homo Tiliaensis to their extinction.

Around 5000 BC, members of Central Vestean tribes migrated to modern-day Lindenholt. They brought agriculture and animal husbandry, which was quickly adopted by local tribes and cultures. The advent of agriculture led to an increase in pottery. Different cultures were distinguished by patterns applied to pottery used to store grain, other crops and fluids. Prehistoric Lindians were milk drinkers and brewed alcoholic drinks such as early beers. These cultures were the so-called Beakercultures, they include the Spike, Dent, Line, Spiral an Bundle groups that were named after the decorations found on their pottery.

Between 4100 and 3200 BC the Beakercultures started burying important tribesmen in. These grave monuments are mainly visible in what is now the province of Atenland. Solid ground in that area, compared to the marshes that made up the rest of Lindenholt, served as good foundations that allowed for the preservation of these graves. Evidence exists of dolmen whose heavy megaliths had sunk in to the soft ground of other areas in Lindenholt. Around fifty well-preserved dolmen remain in the province, mainly as tourist attractions.

Around 2000 BC an important trading route along the Sonnae river brought to Lindenholt, ushering in the. During the bronze age the country also saw a significant increase in population. The introduction of the oxen plough made cultivating the heavy clay soils possible, which increased the food supply.

Tilian tribes
The !Celtic expansion that took place across Vestea reached Lindenholt around 1000 BC. Celtic tribes settled areas in the provinces of Hoveland and Brusseland. Archaeological excavations in these areas suggests that the so-called Heathcultures introduced iron to Lindenholt, this marked the start of the.

Newly introduced metalworking allowed for the creation of higher quality tools; which in turn led to increased crop yields. This allowed for a rise in population but also allowed for the number of people not involved in agriculture to increase significantly. From 800 BC onward trade and crafts developed, which led to the creation of the first urban centres. These urban centres usually evolved from being market places and areas of commerce in to fully fledged settlements. Around 700 BC several of these settlements had reached a population of around a thousand. As attacks from raiders and hostile tribes were frequent, most urban areas were protected with wooden and earth fortifications.

Triggered by climatic changes in the north of Vestea, Tilian tribes migrated from !Allentyr to the north of Lindenholt. Settlements around the areas of Seigerberg, Elkenstad and Beutrecht were founded by them around the same time as the !Celts founded settlements near cities such as Reurink and Veurink. Archaeological evidence shows that the settlements were abandoned and rebuilt several times before the !Roman period, after which they survived in to the modern era.

Most of the wealth at this time was centred around settlements with access to a river or the sea. Compared to the area of Tilian settlement, !Celtic areas lacked these vital trade routes. This weakness allowed Tilian tribes to expand in to areas previously settled by !Celtic peoples. Two centuries before the arrival of the !Romans any significant !Celtic influence in Lindenholt had faded.

Geography
Lindenholt encompasses a total area of [x] km². When bodies of water within the country are excluded its total land area is [x] km²; making [x]% of Lindenholt's area water. The prime meridian runs through the capital city of Artwingen, the western and eastern most points are at [?]° and [?]° longitude respectively. Its most northern and southern points are at latitudes [?]° and [?]° respectively. Lindenholt's highest point is recorded to be [x] at [?] metres high, while it's lowest point lies [?] metres below sea level.

The country's physical geography is defined by low-lying river estuaries in the west, open plains in its centre and rolling hills right on the eastern border. Large areas of western Lindenholt were reclaimed from the sea, as well as from bodies of fresh water. Somewhat similarly, areas more inland were reclaimed from peatlands. Three important rivers discharge in to the sea on the country's western coast. Those rivers, the Sonnae, Kreugel and Arkas play a key role in Lindenholt's culture, history, society and economy. Alongside the previously mentioned rivers the Hove and Waads rivers are also considered to be important waterways, as are various man-made canals meant primarily for inland shipping.

Geology
Lindenholt can be subdivided in to five main geological areas, based on the sediments that can be found on the surface. While these areas are unique considering their history and geology, a feature almost all of Lindenholt's surface area shares is the lack of surface-level solid rock formations. In fact, almost all of the outcrop is aged at less than a million years old, which is a rare phenomena considering Ardin's age.

The oldest sediments can be found in the country's east, where during the second to last (150,000 - 380,000 years ago) advancing ice sheets formed. Impermeable layers of can be found along the edges of these hills, whereas their peaks are made up of the sandy sediments present before the glacial period. After this period, but before the most recent glacial period (110,000 - 11,000 years ago), the majority of Lindenholt was covered by a prehistoric sea. The seabed was left exposed after the glacial period set in and sea levels dropped, which resulted in Lindenholt becoming a. During this time deposited sand on the surface, leading to the formation of so-called dekzand areas that are found throughout the country but are most present in the provinces of Brusseland and Hoveland.

The country's north east was defined by raised bogs, called hoogveen, which was formed by its impermeable sandy sediments causing water to pool on the surface. Later these areas became peatlands. They were used for the extraction of peat, although most of them were reclaimed for farming and animal husbandry during a period stretching from the middle ages to the late 19th century. Other bogs, such as laagveen, could be found near the country's coast in the provinces of Kreugelen and Heelde. While the majority of sediments on the coast are of, the melting permafrost after the last glacial period caused the formation of swamps in some lower-lying areas. Almost none of these have survived in to the 21st century. In addition to marine clay, makes up an important segment of Lindian sediments. Fluvial clay is omnipresent around the banks of all rivers in Lindenholt, however the area between the Sonnae en Kreugel rivers in the country's centre is almost completely made up of fluvial clay sediments. This can be attributed to the meandering rivers depositing clay before moving their paths over a period of thousands of years.

Climate
Overall, Lindenholt experiences a temperate oceanic climate with mild winters and cool summers, classed as in the. Within Lindenholt, can be found more inland where, due to their distance from the sea, these areas experience conditions that tend towards a.

Lindenholt receives anywhere between 690-900 millimetres of precipitation on a yearly basis. Most rainfall is equally distributed throughout the year, although in autumn and summer months rainfall is more frequent. Snowfall occurs infrequently during a period from November through March, however the small amount of freezing days and subsequent rainfall mean that snow disappears rather quick. Temperatures rarely rise above 30°C during summers and seldomly drop below -10°C during winters.