- Aspirants: Ecclesicals in training. They wear yellow robes and shave their heads.
- Coadjutors: Assistants to pulpiteers. They wear taupe robes and shave their heads. *Curveball: A computer game; one of several used by the Eliza to identify promising individuals.
- Eliza: The church that became the government. Founded in North America by Garbi Elizondo.
- Eliza Central or Central: The headquarters of Eliza.
- Conventicle: A secret gathering of those working outside of and possibly contrary to the Eliza.
- Dunbar: A lifetime group of no more than 150 people, living in a single building or close neighbourhood.
- Ecclesical: The top priest of a sanctuary. They wear purple robes and have hair.
- Embed: A computer implanted in a body, or part thereof. They replace slates for privileged people.
- Founder: Garbi Elizondo, founder of Eliza.
- Mask: A super-headset for VR meetings that covers the entire face in order to convey fascial expressions.
- Neighbourhood priest: A local overseer of a dunbar. Retirees from the hierarchy. They wear taupe robes.
- NEO: Near Earth object, an asteroid whose orbit brings it close to Earth at some point.
- Proms: TV, movies, YouTube equivalent (from "promotional videos").
- Pulpiteer: The top priest of a temple. They wear yellow robes and preach weekly to multiple dunbars.
- Sanctuary: A headquarters for multiple temples. They also serve as Eliza-sponsored universities.
- Slate: An external mobile computer.
- Temple: A gathering place and headquarters for mandatory weekly meetings of local dunbars.
NB: A neighbourhood priest wears a taupe robe, but they should not be thought of as junior to ecclesicals. They return to taupe robes at the end of their careers.
- Hello: ni hao
- Teacher (for priests): laoshi
- Yes: shi de
- No: bù
- Do you understand / does this make sense?: Dong le ma
TODO :) Basque is an extremely difficult language to learn because it is so different from most other languages. This language and culture was chosen for the Founder specifically because of the isolation and difference.
Dunbars are named after the work by British anthropologist Robin Dunbar.
Dunbar families live in a single room. Single adults share a room with other single adults. Bedding is stored under the floor when not being used. There is a communal kitchen for each dunbar. Each dunbar has a neighbourhood priest as overseer. Each dunbar is assigned a communal task, such as working a factory, a farm, or a part of a larger business.
Dunbars are capped at 150 people. In the past, a dunbar would split when it exceeded its population limit. However, new population controls were eventually introduced to maintain a dunbar so that it would not be allowed to grow. Allowance for a new baby is issued by the local temple when a member dies, and allocated by a dunbar to a set of parents by the neighbourhood priest, or communal consent, depending on how the dunbar is run. Unapproved babies that cause a dunbar to exceed its population quota cause immediate and non-appealable banishment of both parents and child. They are left to make their way on their own, if they can.
Neighbourhood priests wear taupe robes, and shave their heads. They are addressed as "Elder", and generally are old men and women. It is considered a retirement job for long service to Eliza, or perhaps a way to retain the services of the elderly.
Multiple dunbars meet weekly in a temple. There they are instructed by pulpiteers. Pulpiteers wear yellow robes, and are assisted by coadjutors who wear taupe robes. Pulpiteers and coadjutors shave their heads.
An ecclesical runs a sanctuary. They are sort of big temples, and used as regional headquarters for the Eliza. Ecclesicals wear purple robes and have hair.
- Purple robes, hair: Ecclesicals
- Yellow robes, head shaved: Pulpiteers, aspirants
- Taupe robes with a thin black stipe at the bottom of the sleeves, head shaved: Coadjutors
- Taupe robes, head shaved: Novices, neighbourhood priests (beginning and end of a career)
- Black robes, students