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Republic of New England
Flag New England outline (VegWorld)
Location Map World NewEngland (VegWorld)
Area 289532 sq mi
Official language None at the federal level;

English most widespread

Capital Alexandria, F.D.
Largest Cities New York City
Philadelphia
Boston
Charlotte
Baltimore
Alexandria
President Riction Willey
Population 18,724,000
Density 64.6/sq mi
HDI 0.956
Independence From Great Britain - 1867 (dominion status declared), 1931 (complete independence)
Currency New England Dollar (NED)
Our Timeline Equivalent Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina (USA)

New England, formally the Republic of New England is a democratic nation in eastern Pemhakamik comprising thirteen provinces and a federal district that acts as a fourteenth province. It is a wealthy nation, with one of the highest living standards in the world.

History[]

Map New England County Map small (VegWorld)

The area that is now New England was populated by various aboriginal groups with the chief language groups being Algonquian, Iroquois, and Catawban (Sioux-Catawban), in that order. Europeans explored the area in the 1500s and commenced settlement in the 1600s. Over time, the English became the main colonizers, taking over settlements by the Netherlanders and others. In the early years, disease was rife among the native population, so precautions were taken among the British, who quarantined prospective colonizers before departure to the New World. In the early days, relations between the aboriginals and Europeans varied widely. In some instances, there was enduring peace, and in other instances, there was war. By the early 1700s, the system of Semi-Autonomous Regions (SARs) was taking shape. In those days, tribes were expected to stay within the boundaries of the reservations. Lands settled by Europeans were significantly less than today, and National Preservation Areas (NPAs) also started to be designated. It should be noted that New England was not a nation, or a single colony, but a collection of various colonies, some of which are now part of the Confederate States of Pemhakamik. The Royal Proclamation of 1763 established a western border for settlement and delineated many more SARs and NPAs. All land west of the Proclamation Line could only be bought by the British government, and not individuals. More areas were bought, and other areas not under any tribal control were put under British control, such as western Virginia and northern New York. Much of this government-owned land would eventually become NPAs. In the 1770s, some prominent colonists clamored for more representation. In 1783, non-government owned lands in British Pemhakamik gained substantial internal autonomy, and also were able to contribute some representatives to the British parliament. In the early 1800s, there were various riots in the southernmost states against the British government. By the 1860s, (South) Carolina and Georgia had seceded from Britain and undertook a war against the Muskogee and other aboriginal tribes to the west, taking Alabama lands and moving west to the Mississippi. This started the Pemhakamik War, which eventually ended with the Confederacy pushed back significantly from the Mississippi River and missing some of its long-held northern areas (granted to the Muskogee, and eventually becoming the nation of Muskogee, yet still retaining independence, and hold over some of the conquered land in the west. In the mid-1860s, West Virginia became a new province for a short time, as it seceded from Virginia (but stayed in the Union). It was because Britain (as a response to Confederate secession) considered granting the individual provinces the nationally-owned land in its borders, and the majority of Virginian officials were hoping to open up Western Virginia to settlement. West Virginia was created as an environmentalist province in order to protect the land. However, Britain decided against transferring its land to the provinces, and Virginia came to an agreement to protect most of the land if it ever came under its jurisdiction, and West Virginia again became part of Virginia. In 1867, New England was granted dominion status, and the province-size regions of Ohio and Kentucky were designated as "Forever Wild", and were officially declared separate from New England, eventually becoming International Preservation Areas (IPAs). During the rest of the 1800s, New England benefited from the Industrial Revolution and prospered greatly. In 1931, New England was granted Independence. Some Iroquois lands no longer wanted to be part of New York province, and thus seceded, also becoming an independent nation. Soon after, New England participated on Britain's side in the Pan Global War. Its economy boomed, and the mainland didn't suffer any major attacks during the war. From the early 20th century until the present, New England has been a leader in entertainment, and has shipped its culture around the globe via movies, television shows, and later, video games. In the late 20th century, it also became a leader in sustainable energy and is currently the world's fourth-largest supplier of solar panels.

Geography[]

New England is located on the North Atlantic seaboard area of the Pemhakamik continent, with Canada to its north and the Confederate States of Pemhakamik to its south.

Administrative Divisions[]

There are thirteen provinces, one federal territory, and one autonomous state in New England. These are Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Narragansett, Connecticut, New York, Lenape, Pennsylvania, Nanteague (Nanticoke and Assateague) , Maryland, Virginia, and Varieta. In addition to the states is the Federal Territory, located between Nanticoke and Virginia. There is also one autonomous state of Long Island, off the coast of New York.

The provinces and federal government only have limited sovereignty over a number of areas. These are designated as "semi-autonomous regions" or "SARs". These semi-autonomous regions can have their own laws, including official languages, immigration laws, and others. Most of the autonomous areas are those for aboriginal groups, however other groups (for instance, the Pennsylvania Amish and New York Netherlandish) have some of their own autonomous areas to aid in the promulgation of their culture.

Natural Preservation Areas are not completely under the control of the provinces (as the Federal Government has a major hand in how they are run, but, like semi-autonomous regions, are generally seen as territorial (if not legislatively) belonging to their provinces.

There is only one fully autonomous region, Long Island.

The Ohio and Kentucky International Preservation Areas are mostly overseen by New England, but this job is shared with Great Britain, and the land is not strictly part of either nation.

Demographics[]

Vegetarianism[]

57% of New Englanders are vegetarian (2007 estimate). However, vegetarianism is currently growing quickly, and the percentage is predicted to reach 60% before 2015.

57% Vegetarian
31% Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian
15% Vegan Vegetarian
09% Lacto Vegetarian
02% Ovo Vegetarian
43% Non-Vegetarian

Ethnic Groups[]

New England is an incredibly diverse country, which is a source of pride for its citizens. Percentages are as follows:

71% European
14% Pemhakamik Aboriginal
11% New England Aboriginal
03% other Pemhakamik Aboriginal
05% Oriental
02% Indian
02% Sub-Saharan African
01% Pachan
03% mixed ancestry
02% others

Religions[]

New England is a religiously diverse country as well. This is what New Englanders professed to be (as of 2006):

38% Nonreligious
27% atheist
11% agnostic
20% Cathar
15% Christian
07% Quaker
06% Catholic
02% other Christian
05% spiritual (Unitarian Universalist, etc)
05% various Aboriginal beliefs
04% Deist
04% Jewish
03% Hindu
02% Buddhist
02% Jain
02% other

Note: Up to 9% of New Englanders consider themselves fully or partly "culturally Jewish". The majority of these are nonreligious people. Therefore, the number of people included in the "secular Jewish culture" is around the same or possibly greater than the number of religiously Jewish people.

Languages[]

New England has a wealth of languages, perhaps unmatched in all the world in that at least five major language groups from all around the world (Indo-European, Algic, Iroquoian, Sino-Tibetan, and Siouan-Catawban) have more than 1% of speakers each, and there are a scattering of languages from a great many other groups, too. With that said, the vast majority of New Englanders speak English. Even so, New England has no official language, though English is the de facto language in use. Below is a list of the primary languages spoken at home.

79% English
05% Aboriginal Algic languages
02% Aboriginal Iroquoian languages
02% Italian languages
01% Chinese languages
01% Aboriginal Siouan/Catawban languages
01% Catalan
01% French
01% German
01% Dutch
01% Spanish
01% Yiddish
01% other Aboriginal languages
03% others (Japanese, Korean, Swedish, Wolof, Nahuatl, Arabic, Muskogee, Hebrew, Tamil, etc)

Note: Because English is the language of instruction in schools outside Semi-Autonomous Aboriginal Areas, and English is taught as a second language in the SAAAs, around 98% of New Englanders can speak English.

Flag[]

The flag of New England was first used just after the 1931 Statute of Westminster gave New England its independence. The Union Flag makes up the canton. Its fourteen stripes represent the thirteen provinces and the federal territory. The blue, white and red stripes on the top right quarter of the flag signify the colors (red, white and blue) that had always been most associated with New England. Red stands for the Aboriginals, as well as for the blood shed to make the nation. White stands for the European population, as well as for purity. Blue, a neutral color, stands for all other immigrants who have made New England their home, as well as for reason and intelligence. Starting from the bottom red stripe in the flag, and excluding the white stripes, there is a rainbow (red, gold/yellow, green, blue). This rainbow also stands for diversity that both the population and nature exhibit, while each of the colors also has a specific meaning. Yellow/Gold is for the sun that is rising over the nation. (It is also the stripe associated with the Federal Territory, but officially, no stripe represents one particular entity.) Green is for the prolific nature to be found in New England. Finally, blue is for the water bodies in and surrounding New England, which are full of life.

Urban Planning Trends[]

In New England, as in most other places in the world, cities are defined as contiguous areas with a population of over 100,000 people. Towns have from 1000 to 99,000 people, and villages have up to 1000 people. Neighborhoods and districts are certain sections within all of these settlements where people live. Most neighborhoods and districts have a center based on some public transportation infrastructure. Cities can contain towns, which in turn contain numerous neighborhoods.

Most New England cities, towns, and villages are relatively compact. Blocks are often formed by parallel streets and perpendicular intersections. Buildings often reach pretty close to the street, and if need be, there is parking for vehicles behind them. Many cities have "density laws" - that is, there needs to be a certain density in a city before it can expand further. Various measures are in place to protect cities from rampaging fires because of dense development, including laws regulating what building materials are used.

A certain percentage of land in a city must also be set aside for agriculture, and another percentage for nature. Generally, in large cities, it's around 10% for each. Furthermore, by law in most provinces, all of the crops produced in a city must be sold in that same city or county.

Architecture is often regulated by a committee, and new projects often have a group design charrette, bringing in members of the community, government officials, and architects to talk about the impacts and find agreeable solutions for most participants. Often, neighborhoods will exhibit differing architectural styles. In fact, architecture is one of the factors that has really come to define individual neighborhoods or districts. If a neighborhood is mostly one style in nature, it is often more difficult to build in widely differing styles. Thus, for example, experimental architecture would rarely be allowed in historic districts. However, many neighborhoods to not have a certain architectural standard, and thus are more open to new types of building designs.

Transportation[]

New England has a well-developed transportation system. Its rail network has successful coverage of every settlement of over 10,000 people, and many with lower populations. The main line is the "New England Trunk Line", which stretches from Boston to Charlotte, and goes through such major cities as New York City, Philadelphia, and Alexandria. Of course, at these and other hubs, branch lines sprout out, making up the bulk of the coverage net.

Most cities have a relatively large train and streetcar network, with electric buses making up most of the rest of the public transportation systems. While commuter train lines have stops usually no closer than one km apart, streetcars and buses often have stops every one-quarter km or so. By law, every neighborhood in a city must have at least two streetcar or electric bus stops - one in each direction. Most cities use contact-less smart cards that afford passengers highly discounted transfers from trains to streetcars and vice versa.

In cities (settlements of over 100,000 people), 52% of people go to work using public transportation systems of some sort. In addition, 33% use bicycles or walk. 15% use automobiles. In towns and rural areas, the public transportation percentage is significantly lower.

Zeitgeist[]

Opinions[]

Over the past few years, as in much of the world, there has been increased political friction between much of the "animal rights" contingent, who desire to ban meat in New England because animals are sentient beings whose rights cannot be taken away, and the "pro-choice" contingent, who feel that people should have the choice of whether to eat meat (and thus kill animals) or not.

Music[]

The music scene is similar now to how it was at the turn of the 21st century. That is, the extension of 1980's style music into the present, along with a slowly growing diversity of styles. Also notable is the recent domination of Oriental music in the New England scene, shown by the fact that the best-selling album of the year in three of the first seven years of the 2000s (2000-2006) in New England were Japanese albums - Mai Kuraki's "Delicious Way" in 2000, and Hikaru Utada's "Deep River" in 2002 and "Ultra Blue" in 2006. This means that the plurality of annual best-sellers hail from Japan, as the rest of the four years were taken up not just by New Englanders but by the British, and Pacificans as well. (However, it should also be noted that Hikaru Utada was born in New York, New England.)

Contemporary Architecture[]

The current architecture constructed over the past few years in New England has been a mixture of "modern unorthodox", "Beaux-Arts Neo-Classical", and "Neo-Art Deco". However, several major projects slated to begin in 2007 are showing a return to early 1990's-style "Neo-Gothic" and 1980's-style "Neo-Baroque".

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