The full official name of Sedunn in Sedunnic is Devtoved Sedunn. The original meaning of "devtoved" could be translated to "the people's voice land". This term was introduced to highlight that the monarch of Sedunn was elected by the people, and thus had the entire population's support in his doings, in contrast to neighbouring kingdoms with more feudal and autocratic systems. When introduced, there was no other nation with a similar system that Sedunners knew of, so there never was a foreign entity for which that term was used. Much later, when Sedunners came into contact with the Austral language, "kingdom" was used to describe Sedunn, which was natural since a single person ruled Sedunn, like many other nations. The difference, in most cases, was that the Sedunnic king always was elected (for life until the Reform of 1837, and with no more power than a prime minister or a president since the Reform of 1852). The term "kingdom" stuck until present day, and "devtoved" is still only used for Sedunn, although it would be just as applicable to parliamentary democracies and republics.

Abroad, "kingdom" is often associated with more undemocratic systems and monarchical/royal powers, this also sometimes happens when talking about Sedunn. A common mistake abroad is to address the Sedunnic king or queen as "your majesty/highness". With this article, I want to reach out to the international authorities, and our Sedunnic leaders to call for a change, and introduce the word "Devtovy" to the Austral language (as a few previous governments tried to pursue). This would clear any misunderstandings and do away with negative associations regarding Sedunn's official name.

By Bettu Stavv, teacher and history enthusiast.

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