Ir'aedimikeda: A Brief History of the Symbol that Inspired Kawastyselir

The symbol of Ir'aedimikeda was proposed in the year 2005 by the brave revolutionaries, known as the Intasians, who fought against the oppressive control of its head sovereign state of Kebitunpémé. With vital assistance from the powerful nations of Jylinun and Smithe, along with the additional surrounding colonies of Tai and Rereä, the Intasians effectively acquired sovereignty of their land and its surrounding tribes. With their newfound freedom, the republic nation of Kyland was established on March 23, 2006 in honor of the last name of the most famous and important war chief, Edward Kyland, of what is now known as the Intasian Revolution. John C. Pierce, a top military command chief of the Revolution, was elected as the nation's first Chief of State after Edward Kyland refused the role. Thomas D. McCabe was elected as the Vice Chief of State.

Above is the original Kyland flag circa March 2006.
The symbol did not originally have substantive meaning or a name, other than the nation of Kyland for which it stood, but was intended to be used as a code signal to communicate confidential information to other allied nations. Since Kyland was a new and promising nation-to-be, reports of potential territorial preservation and advancements needed to be concealed until they were well established both politically and militarily so stronger nations would not be quick to overrun the fledgling government. Later documents written by the top Intasian Revolution officials recollecting the events of the war suggested that the symbol came to Edward Kyland in a dream the night before the Intasians won the key Battle of Sargoa Mounds.
In 2010, on the 5th anniversary of the symbol's creation, the nephew of Edward Kyland and second Chief of State of Kyland, Albert E. Kyland, issued a ceremonial proclamation to bestow meaning retroactively to the 'symbol of Kyland' in honor of the life of Edward Kyland and the principles that he and his revolutionaries fought to defend. Its main message was to promote life in all its forms. In doing so, the nation of Kyland simultaneously bestowed an added meaning to the symbol: the principle foundation that the meaning of life is to give life meaning.
The following is a quote from the twenty six page document by Albert E. Kyland: "The twisting L-like line is the representation of life's ups, downs and unexpected curves. The top curve represents the past and the bottom curve represents the future. The equals sign in the middle of the symbol represents the present and how this should be the main focus in life. The 'C' represents celebration and encompasses the entire equals sign because the present is the time to celebrate." Later in the document, he states that "There is a part of the past and future that is in between the C. This is because one should not only celebrate the present, but recognize that the past has led us to our ability to celebrate the present, and the future gives us hope that our celebrations of the present will be all worthwhile. The equals sign is also a representation of equality. This is an ideal that all should stand by, defend, and strive to achieve in any affairs." Along with honoring Edward Kyland and the revolutionaries, the symbol and its relation to the celebration of life was also inspired by a coincidental event. In 2009, one of Kyland's neighboring allies' leader of Faman, Hope Rovvnep, passed away. The primary theme of her funeral was the celebration of her life. In memorial, Kyland set out to embody this theme in its governmental affairs.

Above is the Kyland flag revised in 2010.
In early 2012, the symbol was given a name called Ir'aedimikeda, which means “the celebration of life and equality.” It comes from the Jükerg language, which was originally spoken by the tribe Jüka and has become an official language of the governmental region of Intasia.

Political strife and conflict among its inhabitants began in late 2012, six years after the inception of Kyland. Many citizens, especially among the smaller hunter-gatherer and pastoral tribes, dissented with the overwhelming political power that the capital region of Intasia possessed. The principles and ideologies that the original revolutionaries of Intasia had fought for (i.e., sovereignty from an oppressive regime) seemed to come full-circle to the perspective of the minority tribes. What was once a nation that fought for the minority voice had become tempted by its wide-ranging judicial and legislative powers and many politicians were no longer interested in endorsing people and ideologies that did not represent the nation as a whole. In response to this realization, the seven major tribal regions of Kyland, which up to this point had minor and oftentimes vague powers and responsibilities in governmental affairs, declared a state of civil war against the capital region of Intasia. The tribal regions that dissented were the hunter-gatherers of Sargoa and Jüka, the pastoralists of Tai and Rereä, and the small-scale horticulturalists of Dusia, Keduca, and Jiofo.
The Kyland Civil War officially terminated on March 26, 2013 with the tribal regions achieving the victory. Despite having a technological disadvantage and being out-numbered against the citizens of Intasia (as the Intasians were against the citizens of Kebitunpémé in the Intasian Revolution), the tribal regions were nonetheless highly skilled in the art of warfare and used their greater knowledge of their native topography to defeat the Intasians. The Intasians surrendered peacefully and within two days of the end of the war Albert E. Kyland issued a grand apology to the tribal regions. In the aftermath of the war, the tribal regions decided on a different path for governing post-war affairs in contrast to the Kyland founders' direction. On April 19, 2013, to prevent the flaws, albeit well-intentioned, that the original Kyland government laid forth and while taking the grand apology into consideration, the tribal regions voted not to overthrow the capital region's government, but expanded the judicial and legislative powers of the seven tribal regions in what is now known as "The Great Peace Accord". An administrative council of chiefs representing each of the seven tribes, including a newly elected representative of the capital region of Intasia (the "Chief of State"), was established to govern the new nation. To demonstrate reconciliation and union, the council voted to name the new nation "Kawastyselir," a combined title in honor of the capital city of Waysir, Intasia, and Kastel Vuürepé, chief of the hunter-gatherer tribe Jüka at the time who led the key victorious battle in the Civil War.
In addition to avoiding the mistakes of past governmental matters, the council recalled that the symbol of Ir'aedimikeda was still alive among its people and made a concerted effort to instill it into its new constitution. After a month of deliberations and new policy initiations, Luss Jgum, chief of the Sargoa tribe, was randomly selected among the eight chiefs to deliver a public service announcement to the entire nation of Kawastyselir regarding its new direction. In the presentation, Jgum stated that "As a confederacy of multiple tribes and diverse groups of people, it is our intrinsic duty to maintain the peace and mutual understanding that we deserve as a free nation. The founding fathers of Kyland put forth the values of love for one's neighbor, equality and the celebration of life. It is the greatest oversight to forget that these were once our values and what they meant to us as one nation. Do not ignore the errors of the past, for that is a part of our present disposition. Do not ignore the errors of the present, for that will become a part of our future disposition. Remember the famous words of Albert E. Kyland when he declared that 'one should not only celebrate the present, but recognize that the past has led us to our ability to celebrate the present, and the future gives us hope that our celebrations of the present will be all worthwhile.' If we continue to stand as one nation in love, all are free."

Above is the original Kawastyselir flag circa April 2013.

Above is the amended Kawastyselir flag from February 23, 2017—June 2, 2020.

Above is the current Kawastyselir flag as of June 2, 2020.