Forgotten Realms Lore: Figuring Nations and Areas & Real Life Equivalents in Toril?

[Gavinfoxx]

So far, it seems that Toril has LOTS of places that have real world equivalents...

Going by this map of toril for the basic geography (IE, based on the 3.5e map mostly, ~1372 timeline)

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y17...ril_Names2.jpg

What are the equivalent nations?

I've put together a small list with the help of a website, can I have some help figuring out the extra details and the (presumably many, many things I missed...)

Amn = Spain under the Inquisition

Calimshan = Arabia & Ottoman Empire. Maybe Spain under the Moors

Zakhara = Arabia #2

Anauroch = Numidia

Ulutiun Areas = Eskimo tribal areas of N. America

Chessenta = Ancient Greece #1

Threskel = Ancient Greece #2

Chult = African Jungles

Shaar = African Savanna

Tethyr = North Africa, maybe Spain under El Cid

Cormyr = Idealized Medieval France or maybe England

Dalelands = Switzerland

Damara = Germany, with slavic influence

Taan / Hordelands = Mongolia

Shining Lands = India

Yeshimal Mountains = Himalayas

Mulhorand = Ancient Egypt

"The North" = home of germanic type berserker & barbarian stereotypes, but not seafaring...

Ruathym = Norway, full of seafaring viking berserker barbarian types

Rashemen = Kievan Russia

Sea of fallen stars = Mediterranean Sea

Sembia = Merchant Italy #1

Chondath = Merchant Italy #2

Shou = China #1

T'u Lung = China #2

Koryo = Korea

Thesk = Areas through which the Silk Road travels

Turmish = Turkey #1

Thay - Turkey #2 Except run by Nazis somehow...

Unther = Mesopotamia

Vaasa = Finland

Western Heartlands = England #1

Moonshae Isles = England #2

Malatra = Vietnam

Wa = Shogunate Isolationist Japan

Kozakura = More Diverse Feudal Japan

Maztica = Aztec Central America

Lots of help would be appreciated!

BTW, I'll be updating and editing this post as people help me with this! Thanks!

[SurlySeraph]

Koryo is Korea, actually.

[herrhauptmann]

List seems pretty decent, though I'd say that some of them might have a more generic analogue than you've stated.
Like Chult seems to be almost any tropical rainforest which is far away from 'civilization', though I admit there could be some fiction or adventure I haven't read which gives it a distinctly african feel.

"The North" while it could be Scandinavia, could also be the Roman Empires impression of the tribes of Germania (or whatever they referred to the barbarian tribes)

[Gavinfoxx]

Is there an Ancient Rome, btw?

[Marnath]

Originally Posted by herrhauptmann

Like Chult seems to be almost any tropical rainforest which is far away from 'civilization', though I admit there could be some fiction or adventure I haven't read which gives it a distinctly african feel.

In The Ring of Winter, a novel in the harpers series, the protagonist travels to chult. The natives he meets bear many traits of the tribal warriors found in different parts of africa. Or at least, that's how I remember it after like 8 years since I read it last.

[DeltaEmil]

The shaarian horse nomad culture has always made the tribes there look like native americans riding fast horses in a pseudo-african savannah, with bisons, elefants, wolves and tigers to hunt.

Also, the Shining Lands (Vaar, Estagund and Durpar) are pseudo-India, having indian terms, and even that weird Adama-belief that kinda mirrors the Brahman.

[Terraoblivion]

Vaasa always struck me as a mix of Finland and the old kingdom of Rus, rather than as Siberia. Part of the first does come from the fact that the name is the same as that of a Finnish city, but it also sounds a bit too densely populated to be pre-industrial Siberia.

As for "the north" being Scandinavia, i have a hard time recognizing it as such. It seems to mostly be generic barbarians to me, which is to say a bizarre culture without meaningful rhyme or reason that steals viking aesthetics and mixes them with Siberian shamanism and sickening levels of machismo. It has very little material similarity with actual Scandinavia at any point in the history of the region, nor with perceptions of the area not created through recursion due to the region being associated with the barbarian stereotype.

[Gavinfoxx]

Okay, assume that in different levels, and with different authors, people are using different aesthetic and superficial resemblances to the cultures in question, or using idealized versions of the cultures, or stereotypical versions of those cultures, or just using language and terms that bears a resemblance to those cultures, or whatever intentional or unintentional inaccuracies are present are 'acceptable', I'm trying to figure out, for a useful quick glance, what roughly equates to what, and what takes inspiration from what.

[Crow]

Gotta say, whoever created that map looks like they just warped a map of the earth a little bit.

[Gavinfoxx]

Well I edited the original post guys -- what do you all think about the new list?

[PopcornMage]

I think you've got a reasonably accurate list, though in some cases I'd be more specific.

For example, Wa I'd say was Shogun-ruled Isolationist Japan while Kozakura would be the more diverse Feudal Japan. I may not be using the best terminology, but some specification would help.

I don't think I quite agree Rashemen as Russia, I see it more Celtic with female druids, but maybe the right period in Russian history might fit. Amn, Tethyr and Calimshan I always thought of together as being a mishmash of the Spanish Peninsula, with various periods pushed together.

There's an island country off the coast of Kara-Tur which started with a B, I know it had some reference to the various island countries off the east coast of Asia, but I can't recall the details. I think Malatra did too, but I'm not sure how either. Been a while since I looked at those books.

And yes, Toril/Faerun pretty much a Fantasy version of Earth. Wasn't quite as much before Kara-Tur, Maztica, and Zakhara were bolted on, but it wasn't that far off either.

BTW, you can also do this for other D&D settings. Some are easier than others.

[herrhauptmann]

Originally Posted by Terraoblivion

As for "the north" being Scandinavia, i have a hard time recognizing it as such. It seems to mostly be generic barbarians to me, which is to say a bizarre culture without meaningful rhyme or reason that steals viking aesthetics and mixes them with Siberian shamanism and sickening levels of machismo. It has very little material similarity with actual Scandinavia at any point in the history of the region, nor with perceptions of the area not created through recursion due to the region being associated with the barbarian stereotype.

That's why I referred to ancient Rome and their perception of the northern barbarian tribes (barbarian just meaning non-Roman in this case).
Taller than the 'normal people' (germanics were about 5inches taller on average), carried huge swords (romans stuck to short swords in phalanx, so anything bigger was 'huge').
The only really scandinavian thing they got is a preponderance of blonds.

[PopcornMage]

Luskan and Ruathym are the pseudo-Vikings of the Realms. Sea-faring warrior culture, the version that invaded the Moonshaes are called the Northmen. They even have the horned hats as I recall.

Their Uthgardt cousins are a bit more of the inland barbarian type, and could fit the popular conception of the Germanian if you felt like it.

[Gavinfoxx]

RAR, even more edits!

I need some help with the spains / north africa ones, maybe? I worked on those a little..