Yondoku

Yeongdoku is

Prehistoric Yeongdoku and Cheongzeon period
Yeongdoku was mostly covered in ice in the last glacial period 9000 years ago. The archipelago was first inhabited by hunting-gathering settlers in around 3000 BCE, who established the Cheongzeon culture. Archeological evidence from this time period shows that these people were sedentary and derived their living and diet primarily from the sea. The Cheongzeon managed to develop a high degree of cultural complexity and were the first to create pottery in Yeongdoku. Written records from the 4th century BCE show that these people spoke an Akitsukunic language.

Fukufe period
Large-scale migration from Akitsukuni in the 3th century BCE brought new agricultural techniques and to the islands, and soon began to outnumber and fully replace the existing Cheongzeon people. Early Yeongdokese engaged in trade with continental nations, with Tianqian coins dating to c. 200 CE being found in Gaaweon. The Fukufe tribes eventually organized themselves into several small chiefdoms and kingdoms, which were consolidated into four main kingdoms by the 10th century CE.

Kingdom of Foshizuki
The Kingdom of Foshizuki was successful in uniting the archipelago in 1208 CE. The Kingdom of Foshizuki had extensive contact with Akitsukuni; the kana writing system was brought over and modified variants to fit the Yeongdokese language came into wide use. Tsunegana emerged as a common script and was used to write all documents and literature.

Ri conquest


In 1432, in the midst of the Jeongmi's Northern Rebellion, the Myeongpan Ri family of Jeongmi under Ri Te arrived in Yeongdoku and took over the kingdom of Foshizuki, renaming the country to Yeongdok (朠篤) in Jeongmian and administering it as their own domain. Ri were able to take advantage of powerful Jeongmian cannons in an era where gunpowder weaponry was largely unknown in the archipelago. King Takanave and his sons were executed, while the queen and other royal and noble women were married off to Ri's loyal followers.

Ri and the army he arrived with entrenched themselves as the new ruling class; native landowners were dispossessed and their land given to his continental followers. Records show that by 1471, more than 95% of land in Yeongdoku was owned by the newly arrived Jeongmian-Yeongdokese aristocracy.

The Ri period marked the beginning of a massive flow of Jeongmian and Sinju culture and technology; writing in jeonggeul fully replaced writing in kana, and Tianqian characters began to be used much more commonly. The writing in official documents was switched from Yeongdokese to, and Tianqian-Yeongdokese names began to displace native Yeongdokese names. Government reforms resulted in the formation of a civil service examination based upon that of Jeongmi's. In 1486, the Yeongdoku entered the Jeongmian tributary system, and King Sezo was formally invested with the title of King of Yeongdoku by Emperor Mugyeong of Jeongmi.

In 1540, Yeongdoku saw a large influx of fleeing Jeopseonese civilians and nobles due to the invasions of the kingdom by Jeongmi and Akitsukuni in 1540 and 1542 respectively, including the King of Jeopseon. The 1540s and 1550s saw a failed military intervention to capture King Handong of Jeopseon and a brief break in relations with the country as Jeongmi refused to admit any more tribute missions from Yeongdoku until King Handong was handed over, which Yeongdoku complied with in 1556.

Jeongmian control
In 1637, Yeongdoku was vassalized by Jeongmi. The King of Yeongdoku was allowed to keep his title and the Yeongdokese government was given a great amount of autonomy, despite increasing Jeongmian centralization. Tensions existed due to competition in the rich fishing waters near Yeongdoku between Jeongmian and Yeongdokese fishers. In 1789, a rebellion broke out supported by Myeongsagun, but it was defeated and Myeongsagun was replaced with King Anseong.

Independence
Independence was granted to Yeongdoku on August 15th, 1925.

Government and politics
Yeongdoku is a  with the Queen as a ceremonial head of state and the Prime Minister as the head of government. Executive power is vested in the cabinet.

Administrative divisions
Yeongdoku is divided into seventeen provinces and one metropolitan area.

Demographics
The population of Yeongdoku was 4,784,990 in the 2016 census. The largest city is Doseong with around 901,000 inhabitants. In 2016, over 90% of inhabitants lived on just two islands, Shinnecheon and Fokuzeong.

Languages
The official language of Yeongdoku is Yeongdokese, a North Akitsukunic language related to. It is the language spoken at home for 82.1% of those living in Yeongdoku. After the Ri conquest, Middle Yeongdokese was displaced and became the language of the lower classes, while the nobility would speak. The Jeongmian language had a heavy influence on the Yeongdokese language following the conquest and Jeongmian vassalization, the most notable being the heavy usage of fanja.