It occurred to me the other day that one way to start is to name the city. Most cities get a name pretty early on. The name may change as languages change (Llyn Dyn to London), as the country of which they're a part changes (New Amsterdam to New York) or as the whims of politics dictate (Salisbury to Harare). Nonetheless, they get a name pretty early and that name can be instructive in talking about the city. (Salt Lake City is the best example I can think of.) Anyway, once you pick a name you can get some idea of the history and geography of the city. Accordingly I bring you two cities: Umber Noel and Stalemate Cote. (These sophisticated anagrams come from http://wordsmith.org/anagram/)
Umber Noel clearly describes that it was named around Christmas, or whatever the locals celebrate that they give the name 'Noel' to. Compare this with Natal which was named after the Nativity becasue that's when it was first sighted. 'Umber' refers to the color of the soil so whatever it is that makes soil umber coloured is a resource that this city has, or had when it was named.
'Cote' means coast and 'stalemate' is ovvious. Clearly the city was named after a naval battle that ended in a stalemate, thus protecting the status quo and allowing the city to survive. It probably wasn't founded after a stalemated naval engagement so it's name may have been changed to celebrate the stalemate. If so, some of the steeets and buildings will bear the old name of the city, whatever that might be, (Let's say it was called Oak Pens. There will be some oak trees still around in the older parts of the city and possibly a club or society called 'the Old Oakians'.) The renaming of the city is either because the stalemate is to celebrated or because it meant the city was taken over by a new government who are keen to remind the inhabitants why they're street signs have all been changed (if they have such things) and why the town criers all refer to Stalemate Cote. The first example produces a happy city glad that its ruler saved it from the enemy, the second option produces a city that resents its occupation and probably has a kind of French resistance operating in it. (Which does seem the more interesting of the two for fiction purposes.)
So, one city was founded on some kind of trade and the other has been reshaped in light of a change in politics.
Umber Noel was at one stage rich. Therefore it will have large buildings in an older stule than the current fashion. The older sections of the city will have these large buildings either given over to local government or falling into disrepair as they become slums - depending on whether it's still rich or not. If it is still rich there will be a flourishing art community, an active concert scene or whatever the local culture deems is 'art', which might be anything from massive communal Boggle tournaments to cannibal feasts where they eat their enemies. It takes a lot of money to support an arts community and in a rich city you'll have plenty of it. If present-day Umber Noel is poor, having mined out all of whatever it was that made the soil umber, then you have no arts community and most activity is given over to whatever the locals consider crime. There is far more residential life in the city with older buildings now divided up into taverns and cheap accommoation as the owners of the buildings, even if that is the local government, try to scrape up as much money as they can through renting the buildings out. (If the local culture doesn't allow renting, then you get squatters.)
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timeasmymeasure
The Tale of Two Cities
Date: 2007-12-16 09:33 pm (UTC)Umber Noel clearly describes that it was named around Christmas, or whatever the locals celebrate that they give the name 'Noel' to. Compare this with Natal which was named after the Nativity becasue that's when it was first sighted. 'Umber' refers to the color of the soil so whatever it is that makes soil umber coloured is a resource that this city has, or had when it was named.
'Cote' means coast and 'stalemate' is ovvious. Clearly the city was named after a naval battle that ended in a stalemate, thus protecting the status quo and allowing the city to survive. It probably wasn't founded after a stalemated naval engagement so it's name may have been changed to celebrate the stalemate. If so, some of the steeets and buildings will bear the old name of the city, whatever that might be, (Let's say it was called Oak Pens. There will be some oak trees still around in the older parts of the city and possibly a club or society called 'the Old Oakians'.) The renaming of the city is either because the stalemate is to celebrated or because it meant the city was taken over by a new government who are keen to remind the inhabitants why they're street signs have all been changed (if they have such things) and why the town criers all refer to Stalemate Cote. The first example produces a happy city glad that its ruler saved it from the enemy, the second option produces a city that resents its occupation and probably has a kind of French resistance operating in it. (Which does seem the more interesting of the two for fiction purposes.)
So, one city was founded on some kind of trade and the other has been reshaped in light of a change in politics.
Umber Noel was at one stage rich. Therefore it will have large buildings in an older stule than the current fashion. The older sections of the city will have these large buildings either given over to local government or falling into disrepair as they become slums - depending on whether it's still rich or not. If it is still rich there will be a flourishing art community, an active concert scene or whatever the local culture deems is 'art', which might be anything from massive communal Boggle tournaments to cannibal feasts where they eat their enemies. It takes a lot of money to support an arts community and in a rich city you'll have plenty of it. If present-day Umber Noel is poor, having mined out all of whatever it was that made the soil umber, then you have no arts community and most activity is given over to whatever the locals consider crime. There is far more residential life in the city with older buildings now divided up into taverns and cheap accommoation as the owners of the buildings, even if that is the local government, try to scrape up as much money as they can through renting the buildings out. (If the local culture doesn't allow renting, then you get squatters.)
Stalemate Cote may take a bit more pondering.