Social structure of Vale

The social structure of Vale has historically been highly influenced by the concept of social class, with the concept still affecting Valois society in the early-18th century.

Classes
Although definitions of social class in Vale vary and are relatively controversial, most are influenced by factors of occupation and education. There is however, a class system recognized by the Government of Vale.

Ruling elite (Élite dirrigeante)
Members of the elite class are the top 1% of Valois society with very high social capital, and very high highbrow cultural capital. Occupations in the government are strongly represented.

Council of Ten (Les Dix)
The Council of Ten is the highest social class of the Vale aristocracy and is the most reputed position in the Republic of Vale.

E and non-E
Language and writing style have consistently been one of the most reliable indicators of class, although pronunciation did not become such an indicator until the later 15th century. The variations between the language employed by the upper classes and non-upper classes has, perhaps, been best documented by linguistic Professor François Duhamel's 1674 article on E and non-E English usage, with "E" representing Ruling and Higher Education elites class vocabulary of the time, and "Non-E" representing Working elite and pariah vocabulary. The discussion was furthered in Noblesse Oblige.

Subtleties
There are many inconsistencies and subtleties that many believe are far more important to the Valois system than a person's occupation. For example, many believe that referring to one's self as 'classy' (ayant de la classe) or even using the word 'class' (classe) in a such a context is indicative of a lower class. Other examples include the way a person holds their knife and fork to eat, the way a person pronounces certain words such as 'village', how well a person respects others, and the care taken by a person to uphold the rules of grammar in conversation and when punctuating a sentence, especially when written.

Valois regional accents
Vale has a wide variety of regional accents, most of which have working elite connotations:


 * Sud-Ouest dialect - The accent and dialect of southwestern Vale, especially former Herulia, and the surrounding area.
 * Nallois – The accent and dialect of Neuilly and surrounding areas.
 * Rimouskois – An accent and dialect of north-east Vale, particularly the Rimouski area.
 * Norois – An accent and dialect of northwestern Vale and surrounding areas, heavily influenced by Norman words.
 * Verlan is traditionally the criminal dialect of Lutèce. It also has distinct variations in grammar and vocabulary.
 * The Lutèce accent is spoken by the higher education elite of the city and most media and politicians around the country.
 * Multicultural Lutèce Valois (abbreviated VML), is a dialect (and/or sociolect) of Valois that emerged in the late 16th century, and is used mainly by young, inner-city, working-class people in inner Lutèce. It is said to contain many elements from the languages of Northern Gondwana (Numidian and Arabic), Southeast Asia (Indochinese languages), and West Gondwana (Mali languages), as well as remnants of Latin. The dialect is characterized by its heavy usage of contemporary argot and verlan.

Social stereotypes
Despite the relative homogeneity of the Valois culture, cuisine and language, there is still the habit of believing those who live an hour's drive away are an entirely different breed. Most stereotypes and subcultures in Vale are similar to those in other Western nations on Kobol. There are still unique stereotypes to Vale.

Bobos
The word bobo, is an abbreviated form of the words bourgeois and bohemian, suggesting a fusion of two distinct historical social classes (the counter-cultural, hedonistic and artistic bohemian, and the white collar, capitalist bourgeois). Often of the corporate professional elite, they claim highly tolerant views of others, purchase expensive and exotic items, and are strongly patriotic.

Bon chic bon genre
Bon chic, bon genre (Aegean: Good style, good sort) is an expression used in Vale to refer to a subculture of stylish members of Lutèce's upper class. They are typically well-educated, well-connected, and descended from "old money" families of the pre-Revolution. The style combines certain fashionable tastes with the appearance of social respectability. The expression is sometimes shortened to "BCBG" and is used pejoratively to speak about greedy young pseudo-intellectuals.

Manichiants
Stressed-out urban malcontents are increasingly fleeing office jobs and heading west in search of a better, slower life. They're usually very religious (Manitism) and despise foreigners, especially those who aren't of the same religious faith. The term manichiant comes from Manitism and the Valois word "chiant" which means "annoying", in a vulgar manner.

Faroe Islands
The Faroese have often been qualified as froussards by the Valois, mainly due to their demonym (Føroyingar), sounding a little bit like froussard in Valois, which means scared. There is also a widely spread stereotype that Faroese men used to hump their sheep.

Guiana
Guianans are often referred to as Mowgli in Vale. They're stereotypically tall and dark-skinned and dance and party all the time while drinking rum, in a jungle-like house. Mowgli comes from the The Jungle Book, and the Guyanas are often associated with their jungle.

Svalbard
Svalbard people are stereotypically tall, with a huge beard and are killing polar bears everyday.