Laajkaa

Laajkaa is a cultural term used in the fictional ethnography of the Laak peoples to denote a yearly ceremony that blends storytelling, song, and textile weaving. The word is said to come from the Laak language, where laaj- denotes weaving or binding, and -kaa marks a ritual noun, giving laajkaa roughly "the weaving rite."

During laajkaa, participants form a circle in a communal hall or outdoors, and an elder storyteller recites a cycle of genealogies and historical episodes while accompanying singers chant refrains. A lead weaver coordinates the creation of a long, colorful textile that is worked collaboratively and laid along the ground or hung at the center as the narrative progresses.

Regional variants exist: coastal communities emphasize drum-driven accompaniment and sea-motif motifs in the weaving, while highland groups foreground geometric patterns and wind-chime contrasts. The ceremony also serves as a rite of passage for youths, who perform in the chorus or apprenticeship under a master weaver.

Culturally laajkaa functions to reinforce kinship, collective memory, and social obligation, linking generations through art and memory. In many in-world histories, it is described as one of the central ceremonies that bind the community and mark the harvest season or seasonal transitions.

Depictions of laajkaa appear in speculative fiction and world-building compendia, where it is used as an example of intangible cultural heritage in a fictive setting.