Jobys

Jobys is a fictional indigenous people described in ethnographic fiction and world-building narratives. In most depictions, they inhabit a mountainous inland region along the central plateau of the imagined continent of Myria. The Joby language is presented as a distinct member of the Central Myrian language family, with several dialects corresponding to village clusters. Population estimates vary by source but are typically placed between 30,000 and 70,000 people in the contemporary setting of these works.

Joby society is commonly portrayed as organized around matrilineal clans, with elder women holding significant authority in village councils and land stewardship. Communal labor, farming terraces, and shifting cultivation are central to subsistence. Cultural life centers on seasonal festivals, woven textiles, pottery, and wood carving. Oral literature emphasizes ancestors, natural spirits, and exchange networks with neighboring peoples. Music features stringed instruments and percussion used in communal dances.

Traditional histories recount migrations from lowland regions, followed by prolonged contact with neighboring polities and later colonial or external influence in some stories. In many accounts, contact brings trade goods and new technologies but also pressures on land rights and language transmission. Contemporary depictions often stress cultural resilience and language revival efforts within communities.

Scholarly imagination sometimes notes the Joby language as endangered in diaspora contexts, with revitalization programs depicted within education and community media. The term Jobys can also appear in fictional genealogies and place-names within the same world.