Culture of Pontunia

The Culture of Pontunia is based on French, German and American Culture, with other influences.

Language

English is the most commonly spoken language in Pontunia, known and used daily by the population. English is generally the only language used for government business, although some Pontunian is rarely used for more ceremonial occasions.

Religion

Pontunia is considered an officially Christian country. Christian feast days are celebrated as public holidays, and Christian symbols are used for example in the national coat of arms, but other religions are in the Duchy.

The majority of Pontunians identify themselves as Christians of some kind; most of which are Roman Catholic. Of the remaining religious population of Pontunia, Sunni Islam is the main religion.

Politics

As a Crown Dependency of Austenasia, absolute power over Pontunia lies with the Austenasian Throne and is held and exercised on behalf of the Emperor by his governing commissioner, the Duke. However, despite the Duke holding this authority as a reserve power, the Duchy of Pontchartrain-Maurepas functions domestically as a constitutional monarchy, with the Duke having executive leadership and the ability to promulgate and pass legislation in conjunction with the High Council.

The High Council is the legislature of the Duchy, comprised of the House of Commons and the House of Nobles. Bills introduced to the High Council must pass though both houses with a 51% percent majority before being either signed or vetoed by the Duke. After two attempts of overthrowing the Duke, He consolidated power and rules as an autocrat, with the High Council becoming purely advisory.

Holidays

Date	Name	Type	Notes
1 January	New Year's Day	Public holiday (national)	The start of the new year, traditionally observed by the Imperial Family with a walk on Wimbledon Common.
6 January	Epiphany/Theophany	Public holiday (national)	Celebrating the revelation of Jesus Christ to the world.
12 January	Pontunia Day	Public holiday (national)	The anniversary of the independence of Pontunia
2 February	The Presentation of the Lord/Candlemas	Public holiday (national)	Commemorating the presentation of Jesus Christ at the Temple in Jerusalem.
28 February	Arby Day	Public holiday (national)	Holiest of Arbyist Holidays
25 March	The Annunciation	Public holiday (national)	Celebrating the proclamation of the Incarnation by the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary.
The Sunday before Western and/or Orthodox Easter.	Palm Sunday	Public holiday (national)	Commemorating the entry into Jerusalem of Jesus Christ.
The Friday before Western and/or Orthodox Easter.	Good Friday	Public holiday (national)	Commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
The first Sunday after the first full moon on or after 21 March according to the Gregorian calendar.	Western Easter	Public holiday (national)	Celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Should this date coincide with that of Orthodox Easter, they are observed concurrently, simply as "Easter".
The first Sunday after the first full moon on or after 21 March according to the Julian calendar.	Orthodox Easter	Public holiday (national)	Celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Should this date coincide with that of Western Easter, they are observed concurrently, simply as "Easter".
The Monday after Western and/or Orthodox Easter.	Easter Monday/Bright Monday	Public holiday (national)
The Thursday 40 days after Western and/or Orthodox Easter.	Feast of the Ascension	Public holiday (national)	Celebrating the Ascension of Jesus Christ into Heaven.
The seventh Sunday after Western and/or Orthodox Easter.	Pentecost	Public holiday (national)	Celebrating the descent of the Holy Spirit.
The day after Pentecost.	Whit Monday/Monday of the Holy Spirit	Public holiday (national)	Celebrating the descent of the Holy Spirit.
First Week of June	Week of the Seven Sages	Public holiday (national)	Arbyist Holy Week.
6 August	Feast of the Transfiguration	Public holiday (national)	Commemorating the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ upon Mount Tabor.
31 October- 2 November	Triduum of the Afterlife	Public holiday (national)	Halloween, All Saints Day, and All Souls Day are combined.
14 September	Feast of the Cross	Public holiday (national)	Celebrating the discovery of the True Cross by Saint Helena.
The third Saturday in September.	Austenasia Day	Public holiday (national)	Celebration of the Empire of Austenasia's Declaration of Independence on 20 September 2008.
30 November	St Andrew’s Day	Public holiday (national)	Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle, patron saint of Pontunia.
29 December	Day of the Duke	Public holiday (national)	The birthday of Duke Andrew I. The date of the holiday will change upon the ascension of the next Monarch.
25 December	Christmas	Public holiday (national)	Celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.
26 December	Boxing Day	Holiday
11 November	Armistice Day	Day of commemoration	Observed separately to Remembrance Sunday should it not fall on the same day. Commemorating all those who have fought and died in war, specifically the First World War and those since. Traditionally observed with one or two minutes of silence at 11 am.
19 April	Belgium Appreciation Day	Day of commemoration	Commemorating all Belgians.
1 December	Nutting Day	Public holiday (optional, may be adopted by local authorities)	No comment.
The Tuesday 47 days before Western Easter.	Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras	Public holiday	Traditionally observed with the eating of pancakes so as to use up rich foods before Lent.
The Wednesday 46 days before Western Easter.	Ash Wednesday	Public holiday (optional, may be adopted by local authorities)	Observing the first day of Lent in Western Christianity.
9 November	Berlin Day	Public holiday	Observing the Fall of the Berlin Wall, and the end of Communism
8–9 May	V-E Day	Public holiday	Observing the End of WWII.
5 April	Hobbes Day	Public holiday (optional, may be adopted by local authorities)	celebration of Thomas Hobbes
10 March	Literacy Day.	Public holiday (optional, may be adopted by local authorities)
24 December	Christmas Eve	Public holiday (optional, may be adopted by local authorities)	A day of both religious and secular preparation for Christmas Day.