National Factbook of the TBRE

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Demographics
Nb: Refugees and expats are not counted in the below figures.

Past Populations (nearest 100 000)
1905 - 17.9 million people - Number of people during formation of TBRE
1949 - 21 million - This increase is believed to have been caused by the mass Panda immigration at the time.
1984 - 23 million people - This is due to the Teddy Communist Party policies that ensured higher standards of living.
2012 - 25 million people - Current figure, as of recent censuses


Of a population of 25 million, 80% are bears (Teddy bears, or Ursa Teddius), and so there are 20 million Teddy bears. Of that figure, 19% are Teddius Nord (Polar bears) (15.2% of total population); 47% are Ursa Teddius Toylandrei (Brown/black bears) (37.6% of total population) and 34% are Ursa Teddius Gratskaila (Others eg Panda, multicolored) (27.2% of total population).
Also, 20% are humans, with around 12% (3 million, 60% of humans) people being of European descent, 5% (1.25 million, 25% of humans) being of Asian (especially Chinese) descent and the remaining 3% (750 000 people, 30% of humans) being from various nations, especially African due to the numbers of refugees that the TBRE has taken in.

Total Population: 25 006 289
Criminals (as of prison populations): 16 876
Elderly, Disabled, & Retirees: 3 098 769
Military & Reserves: 10100 active troops, around 200 000 National Guards.
Students and Youth: 4 098 756
Unemployed but Able: 1096 394
Working Class: 16 987 980
Employed: 15 891 586

Largest Populations
Greater Poleemonland - 4 million inhabitants
Greater Toyland (Capital) - 2.5 million inhabitants
Nordica City - 1 million inhabitants
Barentinvargen - 490 000 inhabitants
Novaica - 340 000 inhabitants
Three Claw City - 210 000 inhabitants
Archiva - 190 000 inhabitants
Paddington - 175 000 inhabitants
Pohshire - 140 000 inhabitants
Bruinody - 11 000 inhabitants
Barbare - 107 000 inhabitants
Polus - 109 000 inhabitants
Graskii - 104 000 inhabitants

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Culture and Arts
The TBRE is considered a culturally and artistically significant country, producing a great number of famous writers, artists, philosophers and musicians. The TBRE’s constitution has given relatively unlimited freedom of expression, and as a result, art movements and cultures have thrived. It is also believed that the Renaissance in the 1500 and 1600s has also continued until today, and that the creative knowledge of bears formerly bottled up due to war is being released later than most other nations.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Languages
The TBRE government recognizes English and Tedofian, the local dialect of Laltofian, to be the official and national language of the TBRE, respectively.

Following the Laltofian Language Shift as a result of TBRE trade and contacts with the British Empire, English is now the local vernacular by a large margin. Around ??% of the native-born population speaking it as their first language, and some ???% of the populace having a working proficiency of it. Being the official language, government services must be available in English, and most government business is conducted in English.

Tedofian is considered the national language of the TBRE. For much of the TBRE's history, it was the local vernacular in its varying dialects, but is now a minor langauge spoken as a mother tongue by very few people compared to other Laltofian states. Today, only some ??% of people speak it natively, ??% use it on a regular basis, and ??% have a working proficiency. Nevertheless, being the national language, the TBRE government has afforded it protective measures, including translating most government documents into Tedofian and teaching it in primary and secondary schools.

The population boom in the 50s thanks to the large scale immigration of both teddy bears and humans from around the world have also contributed to the . Number speaking, include. Several of these languages, specifically French, German, Russian, and Chinese are now afforded "Recognized Regional Languge" status in the Usage of Recognized Regional Languages Act of 1988. Under the act, government services must be provided in these languages where there is a significant demand.

Various language societies in the TBRE exist to preserve and maintain the language culture in the TBRE, and these include the Anglo-phonic Society of Teddies, L’Alliance Français de Nounours, and the Teddy Mandarin Speaker’s Association. These are sponsored, in part, by their respective countries (for example, L’Alliance Français de Nounours is sponsored by the French embassy. MINAHIK has a dictionary, in association with other national and international publishing companies, that is published every year with updated terms. Although they have a dictionary on most languages, they publish several volumes of the official and RRLs in accordance to size and depth of words.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Media
Due to freedom of speech laws, the media of the TBRE has virtually free reign. The Ministry of Communications is responsible for the regulation and control of the media, and reserves the right to censor items that are extremely disturbing, break national military secrets etc. However, the Ministry has rarely exercise this right very often.

The public media organizations include (Public) Radio Teddy, which is the largest radio station in the nation. It has been said to give a somewhat more generic information to the public, such as the news and the weather. The Teddy Broadcasting Authority is the second largest radio station and the largest television network, and it also gets government funding. Radiowise, it focuses on the more analytical side of matters, with many programs focusing discussions, debates, commentaries. FM Triple8 is a Toyland-based private radio station.

Private television networks include Telebaren, TedTV, Toyland One and the MINAHIK Documentary Channel, which is run by the Ministry of the National Archives and History Keeping, this channel is very popular due to its historical documentaries.

Newspapers are still prominent in the TBRE. The Toyland Times is a generic broadsheet newspaper. Le Petit Nounours is a French/English newspaper, and aims at a much more academic and analytical audience. The National Expat - Foreign based newspaper for the TBRE’s growing expat populace. The Evening Teddy is a free evening newspaper whose readership has grown monthly. It relies on donations and some advertisements in order to keep running. The Teddy Report (commonly referred to as Treport), a weekly news magazine, is also highly popular, providing opinions and feature articles on the national and international events that occurred throughout the week.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Art

The TBRE has had its fair share of artists. One of the best known is Korber Wuffles the Creator (1471 - 1527). Nicknamed the "Bears' Leonoardo," Wuffles has been credited for starting the renaissance movement in what is now the TBRE after centuries of in-fighting between bear clans. Although he was also quick-thinking in other fields, he is best known for his art, namely his portraits and quick sketches.

A more modern artist would be James Kremsky (1945 - 2007). An all-rounded artist, he not only made paintings and sculptures but also photographs and was a part-time actor. Starting the modern abstract movement in the TBRE, he is credited with turning the TBRE into a well-known, cultural hotpot. He mostly painted pictures that advocated his left-wing liberal ideals, his observations around the time and was also well-known for showing the TBRE's complicated relationship with foreign nations. He also worked part time as a satirical cartoonist for the Toyland Times.
He is most famous for painting "The Bear and the World," a heavy brush-stroke picture depicting the TBRE as trapped between its various countries, a picture which went on to become the basis of many political cartoons of the modern era.


Fredskini Deyole (1836 - 1895) was an artist who specialized in landscape art, utilizing his skill at watercolors in order to depict life in the period in which he lived in the TBRE. His travels took him to the Nordic Alps, where he scaled mountains to paint, to the fjords of Nouvelle, where he almost drowned after his boat capsized and he attempted to save his paintings (now hung in the Museum of Art.)

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Literature

The literature TBRE is well known internationally, especially in the non-fiction category, due to most bear’s passion for reading - it has been described as the “national pastime.”
Especially popular are the MINAHIK project books, such as TBRE: A Complete History , which is a comprehensive look at the TBRE’s history and MINAHIK’s Transport Book, Volume A through Z, which is a comprehensive look at everything related to the transport of the world.
However, the fiction of the TBRE has also been widely acclaimed. History, for example, is a popular genre. Last Stand, by Ubera Van Polus, is a novel on the last days of WW2, while Teddror by Ivan Bjornvorich is a novel on the Soviet Socialist Republic of Teddyland. Alternate history by the author Arthur Denov has also been popular, such as V for Toyland (if the TBRE had won WW2) A Divded Race (if the various bear races had never united to form the TBRE) and Without Humans (if the Toy Islands had never encountered the outside world).
In the world of child literature, Christopher Warco is a monumental figure, writing not only picture books for young children to help them learn new vocabulary, but also young adult fiction. He helped developed the Bob the Bear comic series, and has also written for the screen. The annual Warco Literature Prize, which was named in his honor, is a prestigious award given to authors of various genres in the TBRE, as well as an international award variant for international writers.
Historical literature has survived throughout the ages, thanks to the storytelling tradition. Tales of Teds by Edward the Writer is said to the Teddy version of the Canterbury Tales, and covers life in the Ancient Periods.
There are also a wide number of essayists, who have discussed a wide range of topics. Essays are generally published into a newspaper, or, if the author is popular, into a collection. Famous essayists include Walter Tremar, who has also been an aid to various HM Presidents.
The largest publisher of books in the TBRE is Presidential Publishing, which is one of the largest companies in the TBRE.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Fashion

The TBRE has been described as the “conservative capital by choice,” owing to the fact that people dress somewhat conservatively - polos and turtlenecks, for instance - although there is no law for or against it. It has been explained by various theories, one being that shorts and T-shirts are impractical due to the cold weather. Popular garments include trench coats and long sleeve shirts.

The high-end fashion industry is almost nil in the TBRE, and most local brands are not the high-end ones, but instead designing and selling practical clothing for everyday use.

The national dress is a Velkarstern, which is a one-piece garment that is divided into two parts: the upper body is in the style of a single breasted tunic, and the lower body has long belt spats and a centre piece of cloth. Knickerbocker pants are worn underneath, tucked into boots. A ushanka is usually worn with it as well. As the Velkastern has lots of stripes and space for patterns, individual families and organizations usually have their own distinct pattern, and the government has one as well.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Cinema

The film industry of the TBRE is quite art-based, preferring to stick to one theme and keep to it rather than throwing in lots of elements, like Hollywood. There is also usually a hidden or deeper meaning behind them. Comedies and documentaries are very popular, as is science fiction, war movies and the occasional gun thriller. Most actors are usually also theater actors. The Paddington Film Festival is held annually to host the best films in the TBRE. Major film producers include Baren Pictures Ltd, Studios Teddy, Devoren Production Ltd and Teddy Motion Pictures Company Ltd. Famous actors include Markus Brenny, Caroline Esben, Paul Van Derten, which are now all internationally acclaimed, although many of them still only focus on domestic films.

And The Bear Roared First is the most local successful film to date. With a rating of PG13 and lasting 3 hours, the film described a camping trip in Nordica that goes terribly wrong, with disastrous results. It was widely acclaimed by critics. The theme song “is that what I think it is?” has also entered popular culture - being a popular ringtone, for example - and many teddies can quote famous lines from the movie. It had a budget of T$200 million, and made T$800 million (around US$120 million) worldwide, making it financially successful as well.

Other popular movies include W for Warco, a documentary drama on the influential Warco museum, and Operation: Endex, a 2012 film on apocalypse in the TBRE. Both films were opening box office successes.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Music

Music in the TBRE has been strongly influenced by Russian folk music, especially in the classical and romantic eras. It is believed this is because most classical composers in the TBRE were immigrants from Russia.
Baroque music in the TBRE started comparatively late, due to the fact that the warring attitude was only stopped in the 1500s. Classical and Romantic style of music in the TBRE are usually interchangeable, as Tarsteinian and Karinerarov - considered the two great Teddy classical composers - lived between these periods and used elements of both genres in his music. 20th century music was not very popular, but classical rock and techno have recently become hits.
Prestigious orchestras include Teddy National Orchestra, Teddy Philharmonic, the Toyland symphony Orchestra, and the Central Marching Band of the Armed Forces. T3ddy and Techno Toyland are popular techno bands, while Alpine Way and The Bears are popular classical rock bands.

Top 10 chart hits of 2012, as compiled by the Ministry of the National Archives and History Keeping:

1. The Streets Are Red - Alpine Way (Rock)
2. Dance of the Swallows No. 5 (Karinerarov)- Teddy National Orchestra (Classical)
3. Across the Grenatian Hills - Central Marching Band of the Armed Forces (Classical)
4. Symphony Number 4 (Tarsteinian) - Teddy Philharmonic Orchestra (Romantic)
5. Ever Onwards - Central Marching Band of the Armed Forces (Classical)
6. Tech It Up - T3DDY (Techno)
7. I Saw A Face - The Bears (Rock)
8. Flowing Streams (Karinerarov) - Toyland Symphony Orchestra (Classical)
9. Too Late - Techno Toyland (Techno)
10. Uberbaren - Techno Toyland (Techno)

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Architecture
The TBRE’s architecture is traditionally constructed out of wood, but this has fell out of favor for being flammable and comparatively weak to other materials such as concrete.

Modern TBRE architecture takes the shape of sustainable designs and modernist architecture. Famous architects include Mecho Van Marié (1867 - 1924), who designed Beige House (site of the legislature) and John Koço (1967 - present) who designed various modern government buildings, as well as research facilities for miscellaneous companies.

In general, buildings are built with an emphasis on connection to the outdoors, while still conveying a sense of security from the natural environment. Previously, office buildings were constructed in the art deco style, but modern day office buildings are usually built with a High Tech, Internationalistic, or Modernistic style. Old public buildings tend to be built in the Baroque Revival, Neoclassical or Greek style style, whereas modern ones are built similar to office buildings. Houses are either in the Folk Victorian or Shingle style.

In addition, safety in building design has become paramount in the architecture of the TBRE. For example, most buildings are constructed out of concrete and bomb shelters, and some even feature blast doors. This was due to the heightened fears during the Toy Cold Dilemma.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Cuisine
Bear cuisine features a wealth of food items from a variety of culture, thanks to the diverse ethnic population of bears.

Most foods contain protein of some sort, save for Chinese based dishes (see below). Popular food items include the native Northern Beef dish, which involves a 70% cooked beef from the midsection of a cow with a sweet sauce, steak in general, and fish. Honey and various vegetables (like broccoli, or spinach) are common dressings / side dishes. Pastries are also very popular in the TBRE, from creamy Profiterole to tarts, as well as diary products, especially cheese with a strong favor.

Due to the large panda population, Chinese-inspired dishes are also popular in the TBRE. Bears seem to be especially fond of dumplings, noodles, rolls and spicy foods.

Lemonade, being the biological catalyst, is a highly popular drink, usually drank in lemonade pubs (nb: these are children friendly social gathering places, without the usual connotation of drunks). Teddy Bears drink lemonade in order to preserve the Innate Teddy Complex. Without the preservation of the ITC, teddy bears are prone to becoming more aggressive minded in 6 month to a year, and would eventually degenerate back into a non-sapient bear form within around 20 years. As a result, those who are lemonade-intolerant must take lemonade nutrients often in the form of tablets, which contain a highly modified form of citrus acid and 257 other chemicals. The current success rate of taking these tablets are 99.34%, and if it does not work bears must go through intensive therapy program and surgeries, funded by the State.

Lemonade making is considered an art form in the TBRE, and lemonade bartenders are often skilled in making lemonade. The rarest lemonade (and the most complicated to make and buy) is La Limonade Polus, which takes up to 76 hours to make, and involves several rare ingredients.

Lemonade aside; tea (in particular ceylon milk tea) and chocolate drinks (both hot and cold) is also highly popular, while coffee has yet to gain similar popularity. Alcohol is rarely consumed in the TBRE. Borsch is also popular in the TBRE, due to the cold weather, as well as cream soups.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Religion
Early bears believed in a warrior based clan of Gods in a religion known as Teddistic Paganism, who maintained the Earth and a separate universe named the Heavens. The primary god was that of Arephrenstein, a god who ruled the heavens and gave glory to those who deserved it. Those who lived well were allowed to enter the Heavens, where they faced an eternal life of happiness, and those who had not were reincarnated to try again. However, this religion did not play a major role in bear’s life, due to the Innate Teddy Complex.

A commonly cited figure of religiousness is that 95% of the population is irreligious, and many sources - including the Ministry of the National Archives and History Keeping itself. However, this is false, and recent census show that the figure is only 85%, or some 21.25 million people. It is unknown why this “95” figure is cited. Reasons include the rapid number of immigrants due to the open-door policy, or that the definition of religiousness had changed from “believing religion to be a major part of your life” to “abide by a particular religion.” in the recent census.

Of the remaining religious 15% , around 6% (40% of religious people) are Christians (specifically Catholics), 5% believe in various Asian folk religions (such as Taoism or Buddhism) (Around 33% of religious people), 2% (around 13.5% of religious people) are of an African folk religion and 2% (another 13.5% of religious people) are Muslim.

[Teddy Bear Republic]

Sport
The TBRE has several active sport teams, which have gained some international significance due to their perceived underdog status, owing to the lack of general interest in the nation. The TBRE has yet to win a place at the Olympics, both the winter and summer ones, but has done well in the Toy Islands Regional Games.

The national sport is Tedcrosse, which has been described as a “mixture of basque pelota and hockey.” The game consists of two teams, usually of 8, who use a long basket-cum-stick to either hurl/hit respectively the ball into a goal using the sticks. One may not keep the ball in the basket for more than three seconds, and contact of any body part is considered a foul. Apart from that, rules regarding things such as playing field size and others are very lax. However, due to both the aerial and ground nature of the sport, it is considered very dangerous, and numerous protection is worn.

Boules is a very popular game, probably influenced by various French bears, as is golf, owing to the vast expanses of land in the TBRE. The most prestigious golf course in the TBRE is the Teddy Island Golf Course, a public golf course off the coast of Poleemonland. It is also the usual site for the Teddy Golf Open, which occurs in the summer. Swimming is popular, albeit not in a common form: teddies swim Trot paddle (or dog stroke) with comparative efficiency to humans. Football has yet to gain the popularity it has in other parts of the world, but a national football team does exist. Other popular sports are usually winter sports, thanks to the cold climate in the polar regions of the nation, such as skiing, snowboarding and curling.

Famous Tedcrosse players include Polsky Wulf and Stéphan Leklark, golfers include Dov Anderson and Nita Uther, and an internationally recognized footballer would be Benjamin Van Burney.

National sport leagues are usually run as separate, private organizations with a government oversight member. For example, Tedcrosse is regulated by the National Tedcrosse League, and golf is regulated by the Teddy Golfer's Association.