Ataraxia

6, 33.5, 113.5
Federation of Ataraxia Fédération d'Ataraxie
Flag
Motto: "Bonheur, Hygiène, Sécurité" Happiness, Hygiene, Security
Capital and largest city	Ataraxia City, Port-aux-Princes & Cartelet (8.1 million)
Official languages	Ataraxian
• Regional languages	Wiwaxish, Kojolese, some native dialects
Nationalities	Ataraxian (78 %), Wiwaxian (3 %), Other (19 %)
Demonym	Ataraxians
Government	Federated Constitutional Monarchy
• Monarch	Queen Marie-France VI
• Prime Minister	Élisabeth Levy
Legislature	Grand Conseil d'Ataraxie
• Upper house	Conseil des Nobles
• Lower house	Conseil Populaire de la Fédération
Area
• Total	641,450 km2 247,770 sq mi
Population
• Census (2015)	63,251,174
• Density	103/km2 266/sq mi
GDP (PPP)	2015
• Total	$2.390 trillion
• Per capita	$37,787
GDP (nominal)	2015
• Total	2.747 trillion ₡
• Per capita	43,433 ₡
HDI (2013)	0.869 very high
Timezone	AXT +7 h (105-120°)
Currency	Ataraxian Couronne (AXC)
Drives on the	right
Internet TLD	.ax

The Fédération d'Ataraxie or the Federation of Ataraxia is a federated constitutional monarchy in the south-eastern part of Uletha. It borders Wiwaxia (Ataraxian: Wiwaxie) to the south-east, Kojo (Ataraxian: Cojean) to the east and Carpathia (Ataraxian: Carpathie) to the west.

History

Main Article: History of Ataraxia

Government and Politics

The country has been a federated constitutional monarchy since the Tranquil Revolution in 1710 and the end of political rule by the monarchy. The legislative branch is composed of a Parliament with two chambers, the Senate (Ataraxian: Conseil des Nobles) and the People's Council of the Federation (Ataraxian: Conseil Populaire de la Fédération). The current Prime Minister is Élisabeth Levy of the centre-left Social-Federalist Party (Ataraxian: Parti Fédéral-Social).

Due to its unique history of federation, Ataraxia has 3 effective 3 capitals, although all are in the Ataraxia City urban agglomeration. Ataraxia City is home to the People's Council of the Federation (lower house) along with the executive functions of the Prime Minister (head of government) and diplomatic missions of foreign governments (embassies). The titular head of state in the monarch, Queen Marie-France VI, resides in Port-aux-Princes, the historic home of royal government, along with the largely ceremonial Noble Council (upper house). The highest judicial power, the Royal Court (Ataraxian: Cour Royale), used to reside in Port-aux-Princes. In a bid to consolidate government functions and reduce emphasis on the monarchy's role in governing, the Queen consented to letting the Royal Court leave Port-aux-Princes for Ataraxia City. However, the South regional government objected to the loss of jobs and prestige, so the Royal Court moved to a high-rise in the Cartelet central business district in 1995.

Regions

Ataraxia Population Density Map

Ataraxia is divided into 5 regions, each with a regional capital serving as the administrative center for the central government. Regions are in turn divided into 84 provinces and 3 province-level cities: Ataraxia City, Oyonnax and Léopoldville. Provinces are subdivided into municipal cities (Ataraxian: villes) or cantons (Ataraxian: cantons); cantons can be further subdivided into incorporated towns (communes) with unincorporated towns known as lieux-dits.

Populations are concentrated along river valleys, like the Var, Coronado, Lux and Sher. Outside of major metropolitan areas (eg. Ginex, Stanleyville), the Great East region and the Haut-Var SAR are the least densely populated areas of Ataraxia.

Regions of Ataraxia

Region	Region Name	Regional Capital	Population (2015)	Total Area (km2)	Total Area (mi2)	Pop. Density (per km2)	Pop. Density (per mi2)	GDP per person (2015)
1	Centre	Ataraxia City & Ponthierville	17,224,575	120,395	46,505	143	370	48,848 ₡
2	North	Léopoldville	11,903,939	97,061	37,491	123	318	45,640 ₡
3	West	Oyonnax	11,295,176	85,013	32,838	133	344	39,236 ₡
4	South	Banningstad	10,120,160	115,090	44,455	88	228	34,934 ₡
5	Grand-Est	Stanleyville	8,938,158	147,551	56,994	61	157	41,172 ₡
HV	Haut-Var SAR	Ginex	3,769,166	51,568	19,919	73	189	52,475 ₡

Military

The Ataraxian Armed Forces (Ataraxian: Forces Armées Ataraxiennes) are organized into three divisions:

The Army (Ataraxian: Armée de Terre) . Major army bases are found Stanleyville, St. Éloi, Trax, Sentéry, Gif, Gif, Lin, Coquilhatville, Marbella and Ginex as well as a joint Army-Air Force base at St. Maurice.

The Navy (Ataraxian: Armée de Mer) . Major naval bases are found at Port Franqui, Saturnay and Landec.

The Air Force (Ataraxian: Armée de l'Air) . Major Air Force bases are found at Cité Jolie, Luluabourg, Landec, Albertville, Jadotville and Dolisie as well as a joint Air Force-Army base at St. Maurice.

Geography and Environment

Ataraxia has a varied topography, marked by a large, fertile central plain roughly between the Var, Sher and Lux river systems. The Var river basin becomes increasingly mountainous in the northern and western reaches of Ataraxia, with tall mountains marking the northwestern border. Similarly, the river basins of feeder rivers to the Sher in the South region become increasingly hilly, with more moderate mountains marking Ataraxia's southern border.

The Great East region is semi-arid in its western two-thirds, hence its relatively low population density, except for it's two landmark river systems, the Songe and the Marien. Hills and small mountains mark its southern border. The coast is primarily flat from Saturnay to Marienbad with few settlements, allowing for large wilderness areas and several national parks. From Stanleyville / Landec east to Wiwaxia, the landcape becomes increasingly hilly and forested, with tall cliffs along the coast from Landec to Élisabethville.

Demographics

The country is populated largely of native Ataraxians, but the percentage of foreigners has been rising in recent decades, concentrated in major cities.

The Ataraxian National Statistics Instutue (Ataraxian: Institut National de la Statistique Ataraxien, INSAX) concducts a national census every five years with a reference date of the 1st of February. The last census was held on 1 February 2010. The next census will be conducted on 1 February 2015 with results expected in Spring-Summer 2015.

Ethnic origins

While only 3% of the national population, Wiwaxians constitute over 10% of the population of the Grand-Est region.

Major cities

The following table lists the largest metropolitan centers of Ataraxia (with a population of over 300,000). Note that for census purposes, the populations of metropolitan Ataraxia City (8.0 million) and St. Sébastien (1.2 million) are split among their respective regions (both partially in the Centre and South regions).

Metropolitan Ataraxia City officially includes 6 provinces in the Centre region and 2 provinces in the South region at 8 million inhabitants. The greater conurbation, including satellite cities like Baudoinville, Combault and Marbella has a population of over 10 million people.

The top 20 metro areas have exactly 50% of the national population.

Metropolitan Areas of Ataraxia

Rank	Central City	Region	Population (2015)	Notes
1	Ataraxie-Ville	Centre & South	8,081,176	National Capital
2	Oyonnax	West	4,470,131	West Region Capital
3	Léopoldville	North	3,299,606	North Region Capital
4	Stanleyville	Grand-Est	2,075,126	Great East Region Capital
5	Banningstad-St.Éloi	South	1,697,466	South Region Capital
6	Ginex	Haut-Var SAR	1,334,777	Prefecture of Upper Var SAR
7	St. Sébastien	Centre & South	1,201,759
8	Villemarie	West	1,143,226
9	Fenelec	Centre	1,022,362
10	Donatien	South	925,671
11	Jadotville	North	846,560
12	Élisabethville	Grand-Est	780,634
13	Port Franqui	West	724,851
14	Trax	South	677,036
15	Ponthierville	Centre	635,597	Centre Region Capital
16	Coquilhatville	North	599,338
17	Saturnay	Grand-Est	567,344
18	Paulis	Centre	538,906
19	Gif	North	513,461
20	Desprairies	West	490,560
21	Neufchatel	Centre	466,010
22	Lin	North	443,691
23	Landec	Grand-Est	423,313
24	Dolisie	North	404,634
25	Albertville	Centre	387,448
26	Alma	North	371,585
27	Halifax	West	356,897
28	Costermansville	Centre	343,257
29	Ambeyron	Grand-Est	330,559
30	Nouvelle Orléans	Centre	318,707

Sport

Major organized sports in Ataraxia include football, rugby, track & field and . Winter sports are popular, especially in more mountainous northern and western regions. Surfing is popular on the Southern coast, with a leading surfing competition and music festival held each year at Trax.

The Ataraxian Premier League or PLA (Ataraxian: La Première Ligue Ataraxienne) is the nation's leading football conference, with 32 teams in cities across the country. The PLA is organized under the auspices of the Ataraxian Football Federation (Ataraxian: Fédération de Football Ataraxienne), headquartered in Boulogne-sur-Var.

Education

Grade 1-4 (ages 5-9) correspond to the École Maternelle in the Ataraxian educational system.

Grade 5-8 (ages 9-13) correspond to the École Primaire in the Ataraxian educational system.

Grade 9-12 (ages 13-17) correspond to the Lycée in the Ataraxian educational system.

After Lycée, students may attend either a Collège Technique for 2-4 years for vocational training or a Collège Préparatoire for one year (Grade 13 or Terminale) to sit for university entrance exams. University entrance exams help determine admission to universities based on their prestige and demand.

Higher Education

See also List of Centers of Higher Education in Ataraxia

The most elite schools in Ataraxia are known as the Seven Sisters schools (Ataraxian: Les Sept Soeurs), comprising some of the oldest and most influential schools in the country. Most senior-level politicians, businessmen and military officials are alumni one of the Seven Sisters schools.

As the "national" school of the Upper Var, the Université de l'Haut-Var is often considered as prestigious as the Seven Sisters schools and takes part in some of the same conferences and associations, forming the Elite Eight. Studying at the Université de l'Haut-Var can lead to residency status in the Upper Var for students from the rest of Ataraxia, leading to some of the more competitive admissions in the country and enhancing its elite status.

In general, Écoles provide specialized, elite-level instruction in targeted areas including art, business, engineering, law and government.

Other Universités are found throughout the country and offer more generalized instruction in humanities and functional training for career preparation.

Economy

Ataraxia GDP Per Capita Map

Primary exports are raw materials (coal, iron ore) and finished goods (cars, heavy machinery).

The economic landscape shows a strong North-South dichotomy. Other than select parts of the Great East region that have benefitted from the new economy (Stanleyville, Élisabethville), the southern parts of Ataraxia has lagged in economic development. The wealthiest province (Ginex, 74,203 ₡) has a GDP per capita nearly 3x that of the poorest province (Queyrax, 25,884 ₡).

Infrastructure

Transport

Railways

See also: COFAX, TVM

COFAX (Ataraxian: Compagnie Ferroviaire d'Ataraxie, Rail Company of Ataraxia) is the main railway operator in Ataraxia, of both passenger and freight services.

COFAX operates extensive passenger rail trains over classic lines, with hubs in Ataraxia City's three long-distance train stations. COFAX operates the suburban RER network in Ataraxia City and the local passenger trains in most metropolitan areas in the country.

COFAX currently operates three high-speed rail services: the Northwest line from Ataraxia City to Léopoldville, the Southwest line from Ataraxia City to Oyonnax and the Great Northeast line from Élisabethville to Landec.

TVM (Ataraxian: Transports du Val-de-Marien, Val-de-Marien Transit) operates a separate rail network in 4 provinces in the Great East region. This rail network predates the Great East region's joining of the Federation and does not use the same standard gauge as the rest of the COFAX network. Its survival is mainly due to its use as commuter rail for Stanleyville, with several lines having been abandoned such as the direct overland route between Stanleyville and Marienbad.

Roadways

Main Article: Autoroutes in Ataraxia

Ataraxia has developed a well-funded network of autoroutes linking most of the major agglomerations of the country. Most of autoroute network is free to car users. Some tolls are applied in the Haut-Var, at certain border crossings for foreign vehicles entering Ataraxia and for some infrastructure (bridges & tunnels) built with bonds by Autoroutes et péages d'Ataraxie (APAX). Light and heavy trucks registered in Ataraxia must also pay tolls depending on usage as part of the government's écotaxe scheme.

Air transport

Main Article: Airports in Ataraxia

Several commercial airlines are based in Ataraxia: Air Ataraxie, the national intercontinental flag carrier; Axian Airways, a low-cost regional airline; and, WiwaxAir, a subsidiary of Air Wiwaxia based in Stanleyville.

Large airports accepting intercontinental flights include: Ataraxia International Airport, Feneix Gateway, St. Sébastien-Cressie, Léopoldville-Régie du Nord, Ginex, Villemarie, Oyonnax-Côte du Soleil, Banningstad-St. Éloi, Stanleyville-Val-de-Marien and Élisabethville-Great Northeast.

Maritime transport

Ataraxia operates a number of inland waterways, including those connected to the Grand Canal from Ataraxia City to Oyonnax.

A number of passenger-only and passenger & car ferries operate in the Ataraxia City and Oyonnax regions. International ferries link Ataraxia to Kojo at Baie Chevrise and Élisabethville.

Energy

Ataraxia operates a mix of nuclear power plants, coal, oil & gas plants, hydroelectric dams and an increasing share of wind power and renewable energy sources.