Maekar

Maekar is a small village situated in the central lowlands of the fictional country of Thalmar. The settlement lies near the confluence of the Nira and Veld rivers, surrounded by mixed deciduous and coniferous forest which provides a modest source of timber and game for its residents. According to the 2021 national census, the population of Maekar was recorded at 826, a slight decline from the 842 residents noted in 2016. The village is part of the larger administrative district of Veyla, whose capital is the town of Rylis.

Agriculture remains the primary economic activity in Maekar, with most households engaged in small-scale farming of barley, rye, and root vegetables. Livestock herding, especially of sheep and goats, complements crop production. In recent years, a modest cooperative has been established to process dairy products and sell them through local markets in Rylis and the larger regional hub of Blen. The availability of renewable energy sources, particularly a small hydropower plant located on the nearby Nira River, has provided a limited but reliable electricity supply for the village since 2013.

Maekar appears occasionally in regional folklore as a symbolic representation of resilience, often cited in the oral epic “The Songs of the Nira People.” The name is sometimes used in contemporary Thalmarian literature to denote a humble, steadfast community that preserves traditional values in the face of modernization. While there are other, unrelated uses of the word Maekar in different cultural contexts, the village remains the most widely recognized reference in the national discourse.