ongepare

Ongepare is a fictional cultural concept described in worldbuilding literature and tabletop role-playing campaigns. It denotes a ceremonial rite practiced by coastal communities in the imagined archipelago of Myrion. The term is presented in-world as deriving from the fictional Onge language and is associated with themes of social cohesion and renewal.

Etymology within the lore suggests the word is a compound of elements meaning bind and light, used to symbolize uniting people and guiding them into a new cycle. The construction of the term is meant to convey both communal responsibility and the transmission of seasonal knowledge.

Ritual practice centers on a transition in the agricultural calendar, typically occurring during the first new moon after the solstice. Participants light lanterns, perform a call-and-response chant, and exchange seeds between households. A central boat procession forms a rotating wheel motif that represents interdependence and mutual obligation. After the procession, a shared communal meal marks the start of the new harvest cycle.

Variants and significance vary by community. Some villages emphasize music and storytelling, others emphasize seafaring tales or craft exchanges. Across variants, Ongepare reinforces social obligations, passes ecological knowledge to younger generations, and helps define communal identity in the archipelago.

In contemporary fiction, Ongepare is used to explore themes of cooperation, memory, and cultural continuity. It appears in worldbuilding guides and game sourcebooks as an example of a cyclical harvest festival. As a construct of fiction, it is not reported as a real-world practice.