The Vinkus, often mistakenly called Winkie Country, is the western quadrant of the land of Oz. The inhabitants of this land are called Winkies. While not having an overall leader, the land is split into different tribes, each ruled by a respective chieftain.
Overview[]
The Vinkus is the largest of the four provinces, extending totally from south to north and standing on western Oz, this region is also almost completely isolated from the rest of the country, as it is bordered by deserts at north, west and south, and obstructed to the east by the Great and Lesser Kells mountains, being the only way in the Kumbricia's Pass, opened at certain times of the year, The Vinkus is the less populated and fertile land as well, being portrayed as a semi-desolated place with vast extenses of grasslands, mountains and deserts, there is only a poisonous lake, Kellswater, with oakhair forest, an oasis, by its side, the Vinkus River runs up to Kiamo Ko, the fortress home of the Tigelaar Family, leaders of the Arjiki Tribe and one of the only permanent settlements in the region. There are other places mentioned as well, such as Nether How, a group of diminutive lakes, Applepress Farm, an abandoned warehouse formerly used by the maunts of the Cloister of Saint Glinda, The Thursk Desert, The Sour Sands, The Thousand Year Grasslands, Ugabu, disputed land in northern Vinkus, and Kvon Altar, a strange place that is used as a sacred sanctuary by the isolated clan of Draffe people, a dark occultist people who are said to worship death. It is rumored that there are many underground water springs in the Vinkus. Other obscure places known include a camp in the Outer Vinkus, west of the Thousand Year Grasslands where lives a nomadic family clan led by a matriarch named Xzulda, and also somewhere in the Thousand Year Grasslands of the Vinkus there is small, rundown village of shed-like houses with sloping single-angle rooflines resided b a group of self-reliant children led by Aubiano, a boy of about 10 years of age; The parents of these children had set out to try and hunt a rogue griffon that had been preying on their sheep but none returned, leaving the children to fend for themselves.
The way that the Vinkus is described is similar to the terrain and landscape of the American Great Plains and the Middle Eastern grasslands.
People[]
The Vinkus is inhabited by Winkies, primarily made up of nomadic pastoralists such as the Arjiki, Scrow, Yunamata, and Ugubezi tribes. Some groups, such as the Scrow and Yunamata are at odds with one another. From the novel, it seems that the semi-sedentary Arjiki tribe is the largest and most powerful in all the Vinkus, as the tribe has many villages and the mountain fortress of Kiamo Ko, the home of their chieftains, the Tigelaar family. However, seeing that the family was almost completely wiped out by the Wizard's attempt to rein in the Vinkus, the political position of the Arjiki seems to have declined considerably.
Most Winkies speak a different language than the rest of Oz, having to learn Ozian second hand to communicate with people outside the Vinkus. For example, the language of the Yunamata is Yumish.
With their physical descriptions, the prejudice impososed on them, and the way their behaviour and cultures are described, the inhabitants of the Vinkus are reminiscent of Romani gypsies, Middle Easterners, and Native Americans.
Known Tribes[]
The Arjiki[]
The Arjiki are a large, powerful and advanced semi-sedentary tribe situated around Kiamo Ko, a fortress resting atop Knobblehead Pike in the Great Kells and traditionally ruled by the chieftain monarchic Tigelaar family. Aside from Kiamo Ko, the tribe also has many settlements scattered around the fortress including the hamlets of Fanarra, Upper Fanarra, and Red Windmill, the Vinkus’ largest village. Lurlinemas is also celebrated among the tribe during the winter and in the summer they have a huge bonfire and slaughter pigs before the men descend into the plains for hunting. The tribe however, doesn't have much contact with the rest of Oz and does not hear any news on current events unless a traveler or trader would be to visit Kiamo Ko to inform the chieftain family. Members of the Arjiki tribe are majority ochre-skinned and painted with blue markings, and a typical tribesman is either a nomad or shepherd who inhabits the foothills of the Great Kells. The Arjikis speak a language that shares grammar with Ozian, the common language in Oz, making it very easy for them to learn it second hand.
Kiamo Ko[]
Kiamo Ko is a large castle located on the peak of Knobblehead Pike deep within the Great Kells. The fortress is the ancestral home of Arjiki tribe chieftains: the Tigelaar family, and later the stronghold of Elphaba Thropp, the Wicked Witch of the West.
Red Windmill[]
Red Windmill is the largest Arjiki settlement and the largest in the Vinkus, situated right below Knobblehead Pike, the site of Kiamo Ko. The village is named for a large windmill located in the town; currently a derelict structure, the great pinwheel armature is now denuded of sail, but traces of its original red color still outline the stonework.
Known Arjikis and allies[]
- Marillot Tigellar: Former Chieftain of the Arjikis and the father of Fiyero.
- Baxiana of Upper Fanarra: Wife of Marillot and the mother of Fiyero.
- Fiyero Tigelaar: The Crowned Prince and later Chieftain of the Arjikis, succeeding his father.
- Sarima Tigelaar: Widowed wife of Fiyero and the Dowager Princess of the Arjikis.
- Irji Tigelaar: Eldest son of Fiyero and Sarima.
- Manek Tigelaar: Middle child of Fiyero and Sarima.
- Nor Tigelaar: Youngest child and daughter of Fiyero and Sarima who would later go by "Illianora".
- Sarima's Sisters: Midwives and servants of the Dowager Princess.
- Elphaba Thropp: Lived with the family and became the Wicked Witch of the West during her stay there, later residing at Kiamo Ko and leading the Arjikis.
- Liir Thropp: The illegitimate son of Elphaba and Fiyero.
- Oziandra "Rain" Thropp: Daughter of Liir and the currently the official owner of Kiamo Ko.
- Cattery Sponge: The childhood nanny of Elphaba who currently resides at Kiamo Ko, being its only human occupant.
- Numerous sentient winged monkeys:
The Scrow[]
The Scrow are a nomadic tribe that wanders the Thousand Year Grasslands. They live in sand colored tents arranged in concentric circles with the princess (or any current leader) having a tent in the center. Members of the Scrow have salmon colored skin, protruding eyes, handsome noses, big buttocks, and wide, rolling hips. The tribe is also known to resort to human sacrifice in their rituals. Members of the Scrow speak a language simply referred to as Scrow.
Known Scrow[]
- Nastoya: An Elephant disguised in the form of a human and former Princess of the Scrow.
- Shem Ottokos: Nastoya's chief translator/majordomo, and later Lord of the Scrow after her death.
- Agroya: A trapper and thief who was expelled from the tribe, he would later help out and ultimately ransack Liir and Candle at Nether How.
The Yunamata[]
The Yunamata are a nomadic tribe that wanders the Vinkus, primarily in the Thousand Year Grasslands. They speak in a foreign tongue called Yumish and are spirited but also opinionated in personality. Members of the tribe have leathery skin, long lashes, narrow limbs, supple wrists, and thin, concentrated lips that seem partly withdrawn into their mouths. Elphaba Thropp sees similarities between the tribe and the Quadlings and assumes they are distant cousins
Lesser tribes[]
- The Ugubezi / A mentioned tribe of the Vinkus. Nothing is known of this tribe other than that they presumably live in Ugabu, a disputed land in the northern Vinkus.
- The Draffe / An isolated clan of people who live at Kvon Altar in the arid southwest of The Vinkus.