Syldavia
Encyclopedia
Syldavia is a fictional
Balkan kingdom featured in The Adventures of Tintin
by Hergé
. The name was derived from TranSYLvania
and MolDAVIA
.
, ruled at the time of the King Ottokar's Sceptre
story by King Muskar XII. The capital is Klow, formerly Zileheroum, located at the confluence of the fictional Moltus and Wladir Rivers (after Prague
, which is on the Moldau
/Vltava River). Other cities named in the books are Niedzdrow, Istow, Dbrnouk, Douma and Zlip. The population of Syldavia is 642,000 with 122,000 living in Klow. The national airline is Syldair and the official currency is the khôr (Зилдaв хор).
Syldavia is also called "The Kingdom of the Black Pelican" and its flag is yellow with a black pelican in the center. It somewhat resembles the flag of the Holy Roman Empire
, the Basque Arrano beltza
, as well as the flag of Albania
. However, the royal seal on the wall in King Ottokar's Sceptre
bears a striking resemblance with the Coat of arms of Montenegro
.
The people speak Syldavian
, a Slavic-sounding West Germanic language written in the Cyrillic alphabet
. Curiously, the Latin alphabet
is used in medieval documents, and the Cyrillic letters used are a straight transcription from the Latin letters (e.g., "sh" is written "сз" rather than "ш").
The kingdom's motto is "Eih bennek, eih blavek!" which Hergé translates as "Qui s'y frotte s'y pique" "Who rubs himself there gets stung" (in fact, the motto of Nancy, from the Latin non inultus premor, referring to its emblem, the thistle
; in the British edition, the translators rendered the motto "If you gather Thistles, expect Prickles"). The motto can also be interpreted as a Brussels
dialect
rendering of the Dutch phrase "Hier ben ik, hier blijf ik" ("Here I am, here I stay").
Syldavians seem to be fond of mineral water
, which does not go down well with the whisky
-drinking Captain Haddock
, one of Tintin's travelling companions.
, and that it has an access to the sea. In Destination Moon
, the trail of the Syldavian-launched rocket points to a location north of the Danube
. There are various inspirations for Syldavia. As Hergé noted himself the primary inspiration was inter-war Albania
, but the country's history is modeled after many Balkan countries. According to a brochure read by Tintin on his plane, Syldavia gained independence from Ottoman empire
early, resembling Montenegro
and Serbia
. Medieval kings of Syldavia have similarities with many Balkan rulers of Montenegro
, Serbia
, Bosnia etc. The battle of Zileheroum resembles the Battle of Kosovo
and the Battle of Maritsa
and rebelled nobility are similar of those who divided the Serbian empire
. However Muskar I a.k.a. Hveghi may be inspired by George Kastrioti Skanderbeg, Albanian rebel and later ruler. The king's court is inspired by Montenegrin nobility. As for geography, in King Ottokar's Sceptre
it is a typical Balkan country with high mountains with small towns located in plains below. Niedzdrow twin towns can be found all around Albania
, northern Montenegro and southern Serbia (Sandzak
region), Bosnia and Herzegovina
, Macedonia
, south Bulgaria
and so on. Syldavia has a small coastline and two known towns on it: Douma, the seaplane service harbour, and Dbrnouk, whose name might be inspired by Croatia
n city of Dubrovnik
, although the fisherman on the brochure's photo, described as its inhabitant, is certainly Muslim typical for south Montenegrin (Ulcinj
) and Albanian coast. Only the landscape around Kropow castle is more Central-European, bearing its likeness to upper-Danube
regions. In post-war stories the basic inspiration seems to be Carpathian Mountains
and in Tintin and the Lake of Sharks
- Macedonia. The capital Klow resembles Tirana
, Sarajevo
, Skopje
and Podgorica
. The national saint is St Vladimir and many sources claim it's Vladimir I of Kiev
, but due to the Balkan likeness, the more appropriate would be Saint Jovan Vladimir, a ruler later proclaimed saint, prince of Duklja
, the medieval state of Montenegro also occupying the Shkoder
region in north Albania.
, who occupied the plains forcing the Slavs into the mountains (a historical inaccuracy, since the Balkans
were conquered in 14th century). The modern Syldavia was formed in 1127 when a tribal chief called Hveghi drove away Turkish conquerors defeated at the battle of Zileheroum and took the name Muskar ruling until 1168. He reigned well, but his son Muskar II was not as good as him. Borduria
conquered the country during the reign of Muskar II in 1195 until Ottokar I (his real name and title being baron Almaszout) drove them away in 1275.
King Ottokar IV became King in 1360. He took away the power of many upstart nobles. When an enemy, Baron Staszrvitch, claimed the Throne and attacked him with his sword, Ottokar struck him to the ground with his sceptre
. The King then said the motto and decreed that the ruler of Syldavia must have hold on the sceptre, otherwise he would lose his authority, as it had saved his life. This custom had a power of law as late as 1939.
In 1939 Syldavia was nearly invaded by its neighbor Borduria
, part of it was a plot to oust King Muskar XII. The the sceptre was stolen, in the hope Muskar would abdicate. Tintin had a hand in defusing the situation by returning the sceptre just before St Vladmir's day. The Bordurians then announced they were withdrawing troops 15 miles from the borders. (The situation was very similar to that of Anschluss
in Austria
in 1938 though the conclusion was not the same).
King Muskar XII was a keen motorist who even had his own gun for protection. He was an actual ruler rather than a constitutional monarch (see enlightened absolutism
). He himself ordered his ministers and generals to make the moves necessary to prevent the coup and the invasion. However, the king is noticeably absent from the other stories set in Syldavia such as the launch of the moon rocket. King Muskar XII was married, but his queen's name is not known.
and page 62 of the King Ottokar's Sceptre
album. It would be blazon
ed heraldically as follows:
Quarterly
, first and fourth Or
a pelican displayed sable
, second and third gules
two increscents in fess
argent
; for a crest
, on a barred helmet affronty or, mantled azure
doubled Or
, the Royal Crown of Syldavia proper; behind the shield the Royal Sceptre of Syldavia and a sceptre of justice in saltire
; the motto "Eih bennek, eih blavek" on a scroll below the shield, pendent therefrom the badge of the Order of the Golden Pelican.
language is based on Marols
or Marollien, the dialect of the Marollen
, a formerly working-class (though now trendy) quarter of Brussels
. Marols, which Hergé learnt from his grandmother, is a form of Dutch
incorporating many words of French origin as well as a sprinkling of Spanish.
Educated Syldavians are shown speaking Tintin's language (French in the original).
and garnish are seen in the kitchen of a Syldavian restaurant in King Ottokar's Sceptre
. Mineral water is an important export, and alcohol is scarce, much to Captain Haddock
's disgust. When Haddock tries to bring in alcohol with him when visiting Calculus at the research facility, he is hit with high alcohol duty.
It is mentioned that a prime dish in the country is slaczek, described by a waiter as the hind leg of a young dog in heavy Syldavian sauce. However, this may not be true as the waiter was deliberately attempting to disturb Tintin. Slaczek is served to Tintin with mushrooms and a salad.
The Sprodj Atomic Research Centre, seen in Destination Moon
and Explorers on the Moon
is located in Syldavia. The sprawling complex is located in the Zymylpathian Mountains of Syldavia (a play on the Carpathian Mountains
), located close to rich deposits of uranium
. The Centre is secretive and has very tightly-guarded security, including a large number of security checkpoints, helicopter
surveillance, anti-aircraft artillery, and a squadron of fighter aircraft
based at the facility. Work at the centre, carried out by a large team of international physicist
s recruited by the Syldavian government, involves research into protection from the effects of nuclear weapon
s, and is the base for the Syldavian space program. The facility, which seems to be entirely self-sufficient, is administered by the Director, Mr. Baxter. The Sprodj Centre has its own atomic pile for processing uranium
into plutonium
, and has vast facilities for the research and construction of the rocket-ship which carries Tintin and his colleagues to the moon. The gargantuan complex is last seen at the end of Explorers on the Moon
, and is never again seen in the Tintin series.
In Destination Moon, the Sprodj Atomic Research Centre invites Professor Cuthbert Calculus to head its space division, and later Tintin and Captain Haddock
to be part of the moon mission. In The Calculus Affair
, Syldavia's secret agents compete with archrival Bordurian agents to kidnap Professor Calculus and obtain the secrets to develop sound-based weapons.
.
, particularly the Ohrid lake.
The army appears to have a considerable Eastern European appearance, possibly modeled on that of Poland or Russia. It appears to have well prepared defensive systems, including radar stations, anti-aircraft installations, checkpoints and bunkers.
ns took over the country.
Klow has a big variety of cultural styles. Mostly typical Yugoslavia
n, there is also many buildings of Austrian
and Turkish
descent, for example the old mosques. However, the Kropow castle's architecture and decoration is of Bohemian descent, but this could be because of the fame of Czech
architecture.
As a large and relateively well-off capital city, Klow has a large museum of natural science with mounted dinosaur skeletons. Klow is told to be the Capital of Mineral Water, and they are famous for their Klowaswa (Cyrillic: Кловасва), their national mineral water, literally meaning "Klow Water" or "Water from Klow". In contrast to ordinary Syldavians, who use the Cyrillic alphabet
, the Royal Court in Klow uses the Latin alphabet
.
also has a song called Syldavian walz, featured in his album The Emigrant (Syldavishe walls, De Emigrant, 1989).
Fictional country
A fictional country is a country that is made up for fictional stories, and does not exist in real life, or one that people believe in without proof....
Balkan kingdom featured in The Adventures of Tintin
The Adventures of Tintin
The Adventures of Tintin is a series of classic comic books created by Belgian artist , who wrote under the pen name of Hergé...
by Hergé
Hergé
Georges Prosper Remi , better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. His best known and most substantial work is the 23 completed comic books in The Adventures of Tintin series, which he wrote and illustrated from 1929 until his death in 1983, although he was also...
. The name was derived from TranSYLvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
and MolDAVIA
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
.
Overview
Syldavia is a monarchyMonarchy
A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...
, ruled at the time of the King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre is the eighth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin. It was first serialized as a black-and-white comic strip in Le Petit Vingtième on 4 August...
story by King Muskar XII. The capital is Klow, formerly Zileheroum, located at the confluence of the fictional Moltus and Wladir Rivers (after Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, which is on the Moldau
Moldau
The German word Moldau may refer to:*The historical region of Moldavia*Vltava, river in the Czech Republic*"The Moldau", a symphonic poem by Bedřich Smetana named after the Vltava...
/Vltava River). Other cities named in the books are Niedzdrow, Istow, Dbrnouk, Douma and Zlip. The population of Syldavia is 642,000 with 122,000 living in Klow. The national airline is Syldair and the official currency is the khôr (Зилдaв хор).
Syldavia is also called "The Kingdom of the Black Pelican" and its flag is yellow with a black pelican in the center. It somewhat resembles the flag of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
, the Basque Arrano beltza
Arrano beltza
The arrano beltza is an ancient Basque and Navarre symbol which shows a black eagle upon a yellow background. Today it is mostly, though not exclusively, used by Basque nationalists as a symbol of Euskal Herria, the Basque Country.- History :The black eagle was originally the seal of King Sancho...
, as well as the flag of Albania
Flag of Albania
The national flag of Albania is a red flag with a silhouetted black double-headed eagle in the centre. It is the only red and black flag of a recognised sovereign state....
. However, the royal seal on the wall in King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre is the eighth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin. It was first serialized as a black-and-white comic strip in Le Petit Vingtième on 4 August...
bears a striking resemblance with the Coat of arms of Montenegro
Coat of arms of Montenegro
The coat of arms of Montenegro was officially adopted by the law passed in the Parliament on 13 July 2004...
.
The people speak Syldavian
Syldavian
Syldavian is a fictional West Germanic language created by Hergé as the national language of Syldavia, a small fictional Balkan kingdom that serves as a major setting in some Tintin stories. Hergé modeled the language on Marols, a dialect of Dutch spoken in and around Brussels...
, a Slavic-sounding West Germanic language written in the Cyrillic alphabet
Cyrillic alphabet
The Cyrillic script or azbuka is an alphabetic writing system developed in the First Bulgarian Empire during the 10th century AD at the Preslav Literary School...
. Curiously, the Latin alphabet
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
is used in medieval documents, and the Cyrillic letters used are a straight transcription from the Latin letters (e.g., "sh" is written "сз" rather than "ш").
The kingdom's motto is "Eih bennek, eih blavek!" which Hergé translates as "Qui s'y frotte s'y pique" "Who rubs himself there gets stung" (in fact, the motto of Nancy, from the Latin non inultus premor, referring to its emblem, the thistle
Thistle
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles often occur all over the plant – on surfaces such as those of the stem and flat parts of leaves. These are an adaptation that protects the...
; in the British edition, the translators rendered the motto "If you gather Thistles, expect Prickles"). The motto can also be interpreted as a Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
rendering of the Dutch phrase "Hier ben ik, hier blijf ik" ("Here I am, here I stay").
Syldavians seem to be fond of mineral water
Mineral water
Mineral water is water containing minerals or other dissolved substances that alter its taste or give it therapeutic value, generally obtained from a naturally occurring mineral spring or source. Dissolved substances in the water may include various salts and sulfur compounds...
, which does not go down well with the whisky
Whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
-drinking Captain Haddock
Captain Haddock
Captain Archibald Haddock is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé...
, one of Tintin's travelling companions.
Location and Inspiration
The exact location of Syldavia is not given in the comics, and nothing more is known than that it is located in Balkan peninsula, bordering another fictional country BorduriaBorduria
Borduria is a fictional country in the comic strip series The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé. It is located in the Balkans and has a rivalry with the fictional neighbouring country of Syldavia. Borduria is depicted in King Ottokar's Sceptre and The Calculus Affair, and is referred to in Tintin and...
, and that it has an access to the sea. In Destination Moon
Destination Moon (Tintin)
Destination Moon is the sixteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
, the trail of the Syldavian-launched rocket points to a location north of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. There are various inspirations for Syldavia. As Hergé noted himself the primary inspiration was inter-war Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, but the country's history is modeled after many Balkan countries. According to a brochure read by Tintin on his plane, Syldavia gained independence from Ottoman empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
early, resembling Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
and Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. Medieval kings of Syldavia have similarities with many Balkan rulers of Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Bosnia etc. The battle of Zileheroum resembles the Battle of Kosovo
Battle of Kosovo
The Battle of Kosovo took place on St. Vitus' Day, June 15, 1389, between the army led by Serbian Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović, and the invading army of the Ottoman Empire under the leadership of Sultan Murad I...
and the Battle of Maritsa
Battle of Maritsa
The Battle of Maritsa, or Battle of Chernomen, took place at the Maritsa River near the village of Chernomen on September 26, 1371 between the forces of the Ottoman sultan Murad I's lieutenant Lala Şâhin Paşa and the...
and rebelled nobility are similar of those who divided the Serbian empire
Serbian Empire
The Serbian Empire was a short-lived medieval empire in the Balkans that emerged from the Serbian Kingdom. Stephen Uroš IV Dušan was crowned Emperor of Serbs and Greeks on 16 April, 1346, a title signifying a successorship to the Eastern Roman Empire...
. However Muskar I a.k.a. Hveghi may be inspired by George Kastrioti Skanderbeg, Albanian rebel and later ruler. The king's court is inspired by Montenegrin nobility. As for geography, in King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre is the eighth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin. It was first serialized as a black-and-white comic strip in Le Petit Vingtième on 4 August...
it is a typical Balkan country with high mountains with small towns located in plains below. Niedzdrow twin towns can be found all around Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, northern Montenegro and southern Serbia (Sandzak
Sandžak
Sandžak also known as Raška is a historical region lying along the border between Serbia and Montenegro...
region), Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
, south Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
and so on. Syldavia has a small coastline and two known towns on it: Douma, the seaplane service harbour, and Dbrnouk, whose name might be inspired by Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n city of Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
, although the fisherman on the brochure's photo, described as its inhabitant, is certainly Muslim typical for south Montenegrin (Ulcinj
Ulcinj
Ulcinj is a coastal resort town and municipality in Montenegro. The town of Ulcinj has a population of 10,828 of which the majority are Albanians...
) and Albanian coast. Only the landscape around Kropow castle is more Central-European, bearing its likeness to upper-Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
regions. In post-war stories the basic inspiration seems to be Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
and in Tintin and the Lake of Sharks
Tintin and the Lake of Sharks
Tintin and the Lake of Sharks is a Tintin animated film, directed by Raymond Leblanc . It was not written by Hergé, who supervised, but by the Belgian comics creator Greg , a friend of Hergé...
- Macedonia. The capital Klow resembles Tirana
Tirana
Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...
, Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
, Skopje
Skopje
Skopje is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre...
and Podgorica
Podgorica
Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
. The national saint is St Vladimir and many sources claim it's Vladimir I of Kiev
Vladimir I of Kiev
Vladimir Sviatoslavich the Great Old East Slavic: Володимѣръ Свѧтославичь Old Norse as Valdamarr Sveinaldsson, , Vladimir, , Volodymyr, was a grand prince of Kiev, ruler of Kievan Rus' in .Vladimir's father was the prince Sviatoslav of the Rurik dynasty...
, but due to the Balkan likeness, the more appropriate would be Saint Jovan Vladimir, a ruler later proclaimed saint, prince of Duklja
Duklja
Doclea or Duklja was a medieval state with hereditary lands roughly encompassing the territories of present-day southeastern Montenegro, from Kotor on the west to the river Bojana on the east and to the sources of Zeta and Morača rivers on the north....
, the medieval state of Montenegro also occupying the Shkoder
Shkodër
Shkodër , is a city located on Lake of Shkoder in northwestern Albania in the District of Shkodër, of which it is the capital. It is one of the oldest and most historic towns in Albania, as well as an important cultural and economic centre. Shkodër's estimated population is 90,000; if the...
region in north Albania.
History
The region of Syldavia was inhabited by nomadic tribes of unknown origin until 6th century, when it was overrun by Slavs. It was conquered in 10th century by the TurksTurkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
, who occupied the plains forcing the Slavs into the mountains (a historical inaccuracy, since the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
were conquered in 14th century). The modern Syldavia was formed in 1127 when a tribal chief called Hveghi drove away Turkish conquerors defeated at the battle of Zileheroum and took the name Muskar ruling until 1168. He reigned well, but his son Muskar II was not as good as him. Borduria
Borduria
Borduria is a fictional country in the comic strip series The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé. It is located in the Balkans and has a rivalry with the fictional neighbouring country of Syldavia. Borduria is depicted in King Ottokar's Sceptre and The Calculus Affair, and is referred to in Tintin and...
conquered the country during the reign of Muskar II in 1195 until Ottokar I (his real name and title being baron Almaszout) drove them away in 1275.
King Ottokar IV became King in 1360. He took away the power of many upstart nobles. When an enemy, Baron Staszrvitch, claimed the Throne and attacked him with his sword, Ottokar struck him to the ground with his sceptre
Sceptre
A sceptre is a symbolic ornamental rod or wand borne in the hand by a ruling monarch as an item of royal or imperial insignia.-Antiquity:...
. The King then said the motto and decreed that the ruler of Syldavia must have hold on the sceptre, otherwise he would lose his authority, as it had saved his life. This custom had a power of law as late as 1939.
In 1939 Syldavia was nearly invaded by its neighbor Borduria
Borduria
Borduria is a fictional country in the comic strip series The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé. It is located in the Balkans and has a rivalry with the fictional neighbouring country of Syldavia. Borduria is depicted in King Ottokar's Sceptre and The Calculus Affair, and is referred to in Tintin and...
, part of it was a plot to oust King Muskar XII. The the sceptre was stolen, in the hope Muskar would abdicate. Tintin had a hand in defusing the situation by returning the sceptre just before St Vladmir's day. The Bordurians then announced they were withdrawing troops 15 miles from the borders. (The situation was very similar to that of Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
in 1938 though the conclusion was not the same).
King Muskar XII was a keen motorist who even had his own gun for protection. He was an actual ruler rather than a constitutional monarch (see enlightened absolutism
Enlightened absolutism
Enlightened absolutism is a form of absolute monarchy or despotism in which rulers were influenced by the Enlightenment. Enlightened monarchs embraced the principles of the Enlightenment, especially its emphasis upon rationality, and applied them to their territories...
). He himself ordered his ministers and generals to make the moves necessary to prevent the coup and the invasion. However, the king is noticeably absent from the other stories set in Syldavia such as the launch of the moon rocket. King Muskar XII was married, but his queen's name is not known.
Coat of arms
The Syldavian achievement of arms is shown on the title pageTitle page
The title page of a book, thesis or other written work is the page at or near the front which displays its title and author, usually together with information relating to the publication of the book...
and page 62 of the King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre is the eighth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin. It was first serialized as a black-and-white comic strip in Le Petit Vingtième on 4 August...
album. It would be blazon
Blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
ed heraldically as follows:
Quarterly
Quartering (heraldry)
Quartering in heraldry is a method of joining several different coats of arms together in one shield by dividing the shield into equal parts and placing different coats of arms in each division....
, first and fourth Or
Or (heraldry)
In heraldry, Or is the tincture of gold and, together with argent , belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". In engravings and line drawings, it may be represented using a field of evenly spaced dots...
a pelican displayed sable
Sable (heraldry)
In heraldry, sable is the tincture black, and belongs to the class of dark tinctures, called "colours". In engravings and line drawings, it is sometimes depicted as a region of crossed horizontal and vertical lines or else marked with sa. as an abbreviation.The name derives from the black fur of...
, second and third gules
Gules
In heraldry, gules is the tincture with the colour red, and belongs to the class of dark tinctures called "colours". In engraving, it is sometimes depicted as a region of vertical lines or else marked with gu. as an abbreviation....
two increscents in fess
Fess
In heraldry, a fess or fesse is a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the centre of the shield. Writers disagree in how much of the shield's surface is to be covered by a fess or other ordinary, ranging from one-fifth to one-third...
argent
Argent
In heraldry, argent is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures, called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it...
; for a crest
Crest (heraldry)
A crest is a component of an heraldic display, so called because it stands on top of a helmet, as the crest of a jay stands on the bird's head....
, on a barred helmet affronty or, mantled azure
Azure
In heraldry, azure is the tincture with the colour blue, and belongs to the class of tinctures called "colours". In engraving, it is sometimes depicted as a region of horizontal lines or else marked with either az. or b. as an abbreviation....
doubled Or
Or (heraldry)
In heraldry, Or is the tincture of gold and, together with argent , belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". In engravings and line drawings, it may be represented using a field of evenly spaced dots...
, the Royal Crown of Syldavia proper; behind the shield the Royal Sceptre of Syldavia and a sceptre of justice in saltire
Saltire
A saltire, or Saint Andrew's Cross, is a heraldic symbol in the form of a diagonal cross or letter ex . Saint Andrew is said to have been martyred on such a cross....
; the motto "Eih bennek, eih blavek" on a scroll below the shield, pendent therefrom the badge of the Order of the Golden Pelican.
Language
In their book Tintin Ketje de Bruxelles (Casterman, 2004 ISBN 2-203-01716-3), Daniel Justens and Alain Préaux have documented how the SyldavianSyldavian
Syldavian is a fictional West Germanic language created by Hergé as the national language of Syldavia, a small fictional Balkan kingdom that serves as a major setting in some Tintin stories. Hergé modeled the language on Marols, a dialect of Dutch spoken in and around Brussels...
language is based on Marols
Marols
Marols or Marollien was a dialect spoken in Brussels. Essentially it is a Dutch dialect incorporating many words of French origin as well as a sprinkling of Spanish dating back to the rule of the Low Countries by the Habsburgs...
or Marollien, the dialect of the Marollen
Marollen
Marolles or Marollen is an ancient district of Brussels, situated between the Law Courts of Brussels and the Brussels-South railway station. In the heart of Marollen can be found the Église de la Chapelle/Kapellekerk and the Place du Jeu de balle/Vossenplein...
, a formerly working-class (though now trendy) quarter of Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
. Marols, which Hergé learnt from his grandmother, is a form of Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
incorporating many words of French origin as well as a sprinkling of Spanish.
Educated Syldavians are shown speaking Tintin's language (French in the original).
Cuisine
Syldavian cuisine appears to be typical of Eastern Europe; blini, herbs, sausageSausage
A sausage is a food usually made from ground meat , mixed with salt, herbs, and other spices, although vegetarian sausages are available. The word sausage is derived from Old French saussiche, from the Latin word salsus, meaning salted.Typically, a sausage is formed in a casing traditionally made...
and garnish are seen in the kitchen of a Syldavian restaurant in King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre is the eighth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin. It was first serialized as a black-and-white comic strip in Le Petit Vingtième on 4 August...
. Mineral water is an important export, and alcohol is scarce, much to Captain Haddock
Captain Haddock
Captain Archibald Haddock is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé...
's disgust. When Haddock tries to bring in alcohol with him when visiting Calculus at the research facility, he is hit with high alcohol duty.
It is mentioned that a prime dish in the country is slaczek, described by a waiter as the hind leg of a young dog in heavy Syldavian sauce. However, this may not be true as the waiter was deliberately attempting to disturb Tintin. Slaczek is served to Tintin with mushrooms and a salad.
Atomic research
In the 1950s Syldavia had a secret but successful space program in the area of Sbrodj (named Sprodj in the English edition).The Sprodj Atomic Research Centre, seen in Destination Moon
Destination Moon (Tintin)
Destination Moon is the sixteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
and Explorers on the Moon
Explorers on the Moon
Explorers on the Moon, published in 1954, is the seventeenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. Its original French title is On a marché sur la Lune...
is located in Syldavia. The sprawling complex is located in the Zymylpathian Mountains of Syldavia (a play on the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
), located close to rich deposits of uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
. The Centre is secretive and has very tightly-guarded security, including a large number of security checkpoints, helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
surveillance, anti-aircraft artillery, and a squadron of fighter aircraft
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
based at the facility. Work at the centre, carried out by a large team of international physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
s recruited by the Syldavian government, involves research into protection from the effects of nuclear weapon
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s, and is the base for the Syldavian space program. The facility, which seems to be entirely self-sufficient, is administered by the Director, Mr. Baxter. The Sprodj Centre has its own atomic pile for processing uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
into plutonium
Plutonium
Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...
, and has vast facilities for the research and construction of the rocket-ship which carries Tintin and his colleagues to the moon. The gargantuan complex is last seen at the end of Explorers on the Moon
Explorers on the Moon
Explorers on the Moon, published in 1954, is the seventeenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. Its original French title is On a marché sur la Lune...
, and is never again seen in the Tintin series.
In Destination Moon, the Sprodj Atomic Research Centre invites Professor Cuthbert Calculus to head its space division, and later Tintin and Captain Haddock
Captain Haddock
Captain Archibald Haddock is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé...
to be part of the moon mission. In The Calculus Affair
The Calculus Affair
The Calculus Affair is the eighteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero....
, Syldavia's secret agents compete with archrival Bordurian agents to kidnap Professor Calculus and obtain the secrets to develop sound-based weapons.
National Dance
The Blushtika, meaning "Goat Dance Twisting," as seen in Tintin and the Lake of SharksTintin and the Lake of Sharks
Tintin and the Lake of Sharks is a Tintin animated film, directed by Raymond Leblanc . It was not written by Hergé, who supervised, but by the Belgian comics creator Greg , a friend of Hergé...
.
National Lake
The national lake is "Pollishoff", meaning "Lake of Sharks". The inspiration for this lake seems to be various lakes in MacedoniaRepublic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
, particularly the Ohrid lake.
National Defense
Syldavia has an extensive military, ranging from anti-aircraft guns to radar stations.The army appears to have a considerable Eastern European appearance, possibly modeled on that of Poland or Russia. It appears to have well prepared defensive systems, including radar stations, anti-aircraft installations, checkpoints and bunkers.
Capital
The capital of Syldavia is Klow. The city was founded in the 10th century by the invading Turks, and was then named Zilehorum. The Magyar nomads that lived there were forced to live in Zmyhlpathernian mountains, while the Turks themselves settled in the newly founded city located in the lush hills. In the year 1127, the nomads, led by their chief Hveghi, defeated and drove away the Turkish conquerors. Hveghi took the name Muskar, meaning "the brave" and Zileheroum was renamed to Klow, meaning "freetown" from kloho ("freedom") and ow (town). In 1168, Muskar died, and was followed by his son Muskar II. Muskar II, however, was weak, and the neighboring BorduriaBorduria
Borduria is a fictional country in the comic strip series The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé. It is located in the Balkans and has a rivalry with the fictional neighbouring country of Syldavia. Borduria is depicted in King Ottokar's Sceptre and The Calculus Affair, and is referred to in Tintin and...
ns took over the country.
Klow has a big variety of cultural styles. Mostly typical Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
n, there is also many buildings of Austrian
Austrians
Austrians are a nation and ethnic group, consisting of the population of the Republic of Austria and its historical predecessor states who share a common Austrian culture and Austrian descent....
and Turkish
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
descent, for example the old mosques. However, the Kropow castle's architecture and decoration is of Bohemian descent, but this could be because of the fame of Czech
Bohemian
A Bohemian is a resident of the former Kingdom of Bohemia, either in a narrow sense as the region of Bohemia proper or in a wider meaning as the whole country, now known as the Czech Republic. The word "Bohemian" was used to denote the Czech people as well as the Czech language before the word...
architecture.
As a large and relateively well-off capital city, Klow has a large museum of natural science with mounted dinosaur skeletons. Klow is told to be the Capital of Mineral Water, and they are famous for their Klowaswa (Cyrillic: Кловасва), their national mineral water, literally meaning "Klow Water" or "Water from Klow". In contrast to ordinary Syldavians, who use the Cyrillic alphabet
Cyrillic alphabet
The Cyrillic script or azbuka is an alphabetic writing system developed in the First Bulgarian Empire during the 10th century AD at the Preslav Literary School...
, the Royal Court in Klow uses the Latin alphabet
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
.
In popular culture
The song Sildavia from the Spanish group La Unión (Mil Siluetas, 1984) mentions this country as a land of dreams. The Dutch group FlairckFlairck
Flairck is a Dutch musical ensemble formed in 1978 around guitar virtuoso Erik Visser. The group has varying members dependent on the project. Their musical style is a blend of folk music, jazz and classical chamber music, with touches of blues...
also has a song called Syldavian walz, featured in his album The Emigrant (Syldavishe walls, De Emigrant, 1989).
Sources
Tintin stories with Syldavia:- Le Sceptre d'Ottokar (King Ottokar's SceptreKing Ottokar's SceptreKing Ottokar's Sceptre is the eighth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin. It was first serialized as a black-and-white comic strip in Le Petit Vingtième on 4 August...
, 1939) - Objectif Lune (Destination MoonDestination Moon (Tintin)Destination Moon is the sixteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
, 1953) - On a marché sur la Lune (Explorers on the MoonExplorers on the MoonExplorers on the Moon, published in 1954, is the seventeenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. Its original French title is On a marché sur la Lune...
, 1954, for earth scenes only) - L'Affaire Tournesol (The Calculus AffairThe Calculus AffairThe Calculus Affair is the eighteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero....
, 1956) - Tintin and the Lake of SharksTintin and the Lake of SharksTintin and the Lake of Sharks is a Tintin animated film, directed by Raymond Leblanc . It was not written by Hergé, who supervised, but by the Belgian comics creator Greg , a friend of Hergé...
External links
- On the Syldavian language by Mark RosenfelderZompist.comZompist.com, also called The Metaverse, is a website created by Mark Rosenfelder, a conlanger. It features essays on comics, politics, language, and science, as well as a detailed description of Rosenfelder's conworld, Almea...