Wywódz

Wywódz is a fictional city-state and the titular office in a Polish-language fantasy worldbuilding framework. In this setting, the Wywódz functions as the highest authority and as the custodian of public discourse, presiding over a central assembly known as the Forum. Debates and deliberations are carried out as structured arguments aimed at shaping laws and policy, rather than through force or decree.

Etymology and concept: The name Wywódz is a constructed term drawing on the Polish wywód, meaning an exposition or argument, combined with an agentive-like ending to form a formal title. The term is intentionally associated with reasoning, debate, and rational governance, emphasizing rhetoric as a civic tool.

Geography and society: The fictional city-state of Wywódz is described as occupying a river valley with a compact urban core centered on the Forum’s debating halls. The population is portrayed as diverse, with a strong scholarly and mercantile class. The economy centers on manuscript culture, education, and crafts that support learning, including bookbinding and glasswork.

Governance and institutions: The Wywódz is both a ceremonial and practical office, traditionally elected by deliberative consensus within the Forum. The office-holder chairs debates, oversees judicial-administrative proceedings, and guides constitutional reforms through argument-based processes. A separate body, the Academy of Exposition, trains future officials and rhetoricians in logic, rhetoric, and civic procedure.

Culture and influence: Wywódz culture prizes eloquence, critical thinking, and public accountability. Festivals of exposition, debate leagues, and public lectures are common, reinforcing a civic identity centered on reasoned discourse. The concept appears in various works of fiction and role-playing materials within the same fictional universe.

See also: wywód, rhetoric, public forum.