"Ask an elf how long it took to master a craft, and she will answer in centuries. Ask a human, and he will tell you he is still learning, and then show you something no elf has ever thought to try. They have so little time, and they know it. Perhaps that is why they never wait." — from the journals of an Aetherian scholar
Humans are the most widespread people on Nova, found on every continent and in nearly every city. Their lives are short in the grand scheme of things, a single lifetime to an elf's several, and that shortness drives them. Humans are quick to push the boundaries of progress, building, inventing and reaching further than longer-lived species feel any need to.
They are also among the quickest to adapt to any culture or situation. A human raised in the clans of Glacithar, the courts of Ezogashima or the canals of Aetheria will take on that homeland's ways as their own. Because of this, humans have no single culture. Their names, faiths and customs belong to the land that raised them.
Humans by Homeland
Roh-ber
In the nations of Roh-ber, humans carry a given name and a surname earned from family trade or the land, such as Bernard Callborn, Marta Hale or Rowan Elmsong. Surnames lean toward the local landscape: stone and gems in Aurumhold, the sea in Tidegate, and plants and song in Sylvaris. Roh-ber's humans are practical and trade-minded, and they mix easily with other species.
The Ravus Empire
Humans of the Ravus Empire favour sharp, hard-sounding given names and dark surnames, such as Malrik Vaelshade, some earned in service and some handed down through military families. Their lives revolve around the state and survival in the factory-cities.
Aetheria
Aetherian humans have flowing given names, in the tradition of the city's founder Liora the Wellspring, and family house names that carry weight in the Senate. Families take pride in their lineage, in debate and in patronage of the arts.
Ezogashima
In the Shogunate, humans carry Japanese-style names, such as Amaya Takahiro and Yuki Mizuno. Loyalty to one's clan comes before everything, and humans sit at the top of the social order.
Glacithar
Among the Jötnar Clans, humans carry a given name followed by a parent's name, as son or daughter of that parent, and give their clan's name among strangers. Each clan rules itself under its own Jarl.
Sanctara
Under the Holy Order, humans favour saints' and knightly names, and knights carry the title Ser. High clergy take a new name on ascension, as the Pontiff Clement VI did. Faith is strict in Divinholm, while coastal cities like Port Solace blend many cultures.