The Predynastic period was the span of recorded history before the establishment of the 1st Dynasty. Following The Ksehyl, a major trend of this period is clan consolidation and centralization. Eventually, alongside urbanization, clans would resemble early, decentralized states, that would begin to interact with and invade neighboring civilizations in an organized fashion. The Wajahe would invent (or possibly adapt) writing during this period, which would spread to the other major civilizations of the day. This would also be the period in which the overriding character of the Wajahe as a martial civilization would be fully cemented - and fittingly, the predynastic period would end after a major conflict against the Ejee empire centered at the then-Dajitti city of Koshayis - which the Wajahe would handily defeat and conquer.
From the Steppe to the Lakes
At the beginning of this period, there were 2 distinct groups of Wajahe - the Steppe Wajahe and the Lake Wajahe. The Steppe Wajahe were fully nomadic, while the Lake Wajahe were semi-nomadic - the former is typically associated with Bemwe De and the Bwuzde while the latter is typically associated with Bemwe Gehan and the Chuzde. There were substantial differences in the material culture of these two peoples as is preserved in the archaeological record, and it is assumed they spoke the same language.
Around 250 KS, there was a major conflict - The Contest of Chiefs - between several clans of the Steppe Wajahe (in the mythologized telling, a group of vacant clans that were led by the Bwuzde) and the Wzetsyew. The Steppe Wajahe were defeated and largely driven out of their land. From their Steppe homeland, they went westwards into the Lakes, intermixing with with the Lake Wajahe - from this point onwards, the two mix sufficiently to be considered one people. During this period, there are frequently clashes with the Zuu6 people, against whom the Tim Clan of the Wajahe would eventually prevail (and conquer).
The Wajahe around 200 KS. The lake Wajahe are in pink and the Steppe Wajahe in purple.
The Wajahe around 400 KS. Note The Riverine Culture in red and the Zuu6 in orange.
The Wajahe around 450 KS. Note the Nwah people, an offshoot of the Nla Clan.
Early Clan Centralization
Rise of the Chuzde (and the Nla)
see Ksehen Resurgent
The First City
Writing & Philosophy
see The Old Wajahic Script and Early Wajahe Philosophy
The First Dynasty
The Predynastic period would end with the establishment of the 1st Dynasty of the Wajahe, which was a confederacy between the Ksehen Clan and the Nla Clan (as well as the remnants of the Tim Clan).
Note that dynasty here doesn’t refer to a lineage, but rather a cohesive period of rule by a major state.
Notes
- Towards the end of this period, the Kih Wajahe emerge as a separate Wajahic people in the steppe. Their decline was contemporaneous with the collapse of the 1st dynasty.
- Chariots, Wool Processing and Glass and Glaze were some notable technologies developed by the Wajahe during this period.