Celepina: Cultural notes

Celepinans tend to grow tall in the low gravity of their homeword. The average adult female is over 2 metres, males reach 2 metres 30 cm. The population tends towards olive skin, with brown or black hair. Eye colour is usually green or green-brown. The population numbers tend to stay at the same level. Many youths leave the planet, the greater majority join the military services. On retirement, they return, often with partners and children. The ruling class of technicians resent off-world ideas and particularly resent those who return with technical skills. The technicians do not like their monopoly eroded. In recent years teenagers have been causing minor acts of sabotage to bring the ruling technicians into disrepute. In general Celepinans are friendly and welcoming, particulary so towards people in military service.

The locals pronounce the name of their planet with a hard "k" at the start (Kell-ee-peena) although Galanglic speakers usually say it "Sell-ee-peena". All writing uses the cyrillic (Old High Russian) script, but the spoken language is Galanglic. In the spaceport all essential signs are in both scripts. Several attempts to introduce standard script have failed, the Celepinans see their script as one of the few things that distinguishes them from an increasingly homogeneous Imperium.

Celepinans have little concept of modesty and will happily undress in a shop to try on clothes. Body paint (in lieu of clothes) is considered acceptable, although sexual behaviour is not tolerated in public. (In the same way that spitting inside a restaurant will get you thrown out.) Toilets are unisex, there are no taboos.