Ouisquinipi

Ouisquinipi (/ˈwiskinipi/), known formally as the United Republic of Ouisquinipi (: République unie d'Ouisquinipi, : ᒪᐢᑲᐃᐧᓭᐃᐧᐣ ᐊᔨᓯᓂᐊᐧᐠ ᐃᐧᐢᑭᓂᐱ or Maskawisewin ayisiniwak Wiskinipi), is a country in Arcadia. With 127,456,950 inhabitants in 2020, it is one of the most populated countries in Helios. Ouisquinipi functions as a federal parliamentary republic, with its 26 units enjoying a high degree of autonomy, which is a result of the cultural diversity of the country as a whole. The main working language of Ouisquinipi is, but , the most-spoken indigenous language, is officially recognised as well, while other minority languages such as or , among others, benefit from federal protection.

A great power, Ouisquinipi is regarded as a leading country in level of democracy, welfare and press freedom. One of the richest countries in the world, it is however prone to a large level of wealth discrepancy (whether between White and Indigenous people, inhabitants of the West or the South of the country and inhabitants of the centre, North and East, or mainland Ouisquinois citizens and Île Novembre inhabitants.)

History
Modern Ouisquinipi is believed to have been founded when the first colonists and pioneers from Saintscotto landed on Cape l'Ambès in 1609, and soon after founded the eponymous settlement. In just a few years, the whole western part of the modern country became the loosely integrated colony of New Saintscotto, with the town of Abitibi as its capital. Contact with native Algonquian tribes has been at first cordial, with many colonists and natives intermarrying. However, in an attempt to strengthen its colonial empire, Saintscotto decided to reinforce its control over the territory, organizing more waves of White Naurussian settlement and ultimately driving out both native people and Métis people out of their lands.

In 1798, soon after the Saintscottois Revolution, what left of the country's monarchy decided to evade to the Arcadian colony. However, with rampant inequality, the New Saintscottois lower classes, mainly descended from the first colonists and Métis people, started to associate. The Abitibiens Brotherhood, led by Jean-Philippe Blanchet, an anti-Saintscottois journalist, would grow in popularity before finally triggering the Abitibiens Uprising and then the Ouisquinois Civil War in July 1808. The Saintscottois monarchy would be abolished for good, and the United Republic of Ouisquinipi (named after the suggestion of Métis war general Colas Jeanbertin, would see the light of day on the morning of November 12th, 1808.

Physical
Ouisquinipi is a large country with a wide variety of landscapes, including grasslands, several mountain ranges, large forests, arctic tundra, steppes (locally referred to as prairies) and fjords. The climate of the country is mostly temperate and continental, enduring hot summers and cold winters. Northern regions are subarctic, while the southern panhandle enjoys a milder oceanic climate, with Île Novembre and both Tchéroquis being the sunniest and warmest regions on average.

Several weather hazards are common in Ouisquinipi; from violent winter windstorms (locally known as ), to eventual tropical storms and hurricanes over the summer and fall. Tornado outbreaks are also very widesperad, as are winter blizzards...

The country is made up of several mountainous and volcanic ranges, the highest of which being the Massif de Terrenoire, located in the northern units of Noranda and Attabasca. Mount Mamaskatamowin (formerly known as Mount Doucier), peaking at 6,190m, is the tallest mountain of Ouisquinipi and of all Arcadia. The Pierre-Jaune supervolcanic caldeira, located in Noranda, is a famed tourist attraction.

Political
Ouisquinipi is made up of 26 units (unités), all with equal status before the law. Units are able to seat a legislative assembly in order to enact their own laws, and also have their own judicial system. However, all of these must abide to the rules set by the Constitution. Each parliament is ruled by a Minister-President (ministre-président), which is named by the prefect (préfet) on behalf of the federal government following elections to the local Assembly. Each parliament is allocated a number of seats in the Federal Assembly in function of their demography, as well as 2 indirectly-elected seats in the Senate. The federal capital, Fontvieille, is a federal commune (commune fédérale) whose mayor holds the powers of a regular Minister-President. It has 5 seats in the Federal Assembly and 1 in the Senate.