Bajaría
Bajaría | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Coat of arms
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 Location of Bajaría (green) in the Kingdom of Sierra | |
| Status | Established on March 6, 2021 |
| Capital | Salsipuedes |
| Largest city | Tijuana |
| Official languages | Spanish |
| Demonym(s) |
Bajaríano (a) (Spanish) Bajarian (English) |
| Sovereign state |
 Kingdom of Sierra |
| Government | Devolved parliamentary legislature within a Federal semi-parliamentary constitutional monachy |
• Queen | Elizabeth II |
| Carmen Silva-Reyes | |
| Legislature | Parliament of Bajaría |
| Autonomy within the Kingdom of Sierra | |
| 13 January 2021 | |
| 15 February 2021 | |
| 6 March 2021 | |
| Area | |
• Total | 337,905 km2 (130,466 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• 2020 census | 12,080,340 |
| Currency | Sierran dollar ($) (KSD) |
| Time zone | UTC−8 (west) and –6 (east) (PST/CST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC–7 (west) and –5 (east) (PDT/CDT) |
| Date format | dd-mm-yyyy |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +52 |
| ISO 3166 code | BJ |
| Internet TLD | bj.ks |
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Website www.bajaría.bj | |
Bajaría (historically known as El Norte) is one of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of Sierra. Established on March 6, 2021, it is the most recently established country in the Kingdom and the first established after the original 1950 Charter. It comprises five states, which are based on the four historic territories which formed El Norte, a region consisting of former Mexican territory under Sierran sovereign control, including Pacífico Norte, Pacífico Sur, Mérida, and Cancún. South Sonora is the fifth state and was partitioned from Pacífico Norte. El Norte was long considered a candidate for country status. Following the results of the 2021 El Norte status referendums, Parliament passed the Organic Act of 2021, which declared Bajaría was a country in the Kingdom, and officially promulgated its existence on 6 March 2021, with a provisional transition government soon established thereafter.
All of Bajaría was historically a part of Mexico but were variously acquired by Sierra through conquest or unequal treaties. The Baja California peninsula and Mexican state of Sonora were included in the territorial gains of the California Republic following the Mexican–American War and the ratification of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The San Diego–Yuma line and El Norte Acts (including the Baja California Peninsula and Sonora Land Act) formally and politically divided the region from the incorporated states of California, which later reorganized as the Kingdom of Sierra. The unincorporated territories became known as El Norte. Californios who were disenfranchised and displaced in Alta California migrated to El Norte, and thousands of Mexican political refugees fleeing the political turmoil of Mexico settled in El Norte. As a predominantly Hispanophone region, a national identity as Norteños (later Bajarians) developed. Largely encompassing vast swaths of arid, desert land, El Norte remained largely underdeveloped for most of the 19th century, aside from a number of mostly coastal settlements, but was the favored destination for immigrants from Latin America and the Middle East. Discriminatory policies against Hispanic and Latino Sierrans living in El Norte, as well as fear of the threat of Landonism, led to internal border controls through the form of separation barriers (as exemplified by the Transpeninsular and Trans-Sonoran barriers) and the pass system. El Norte enlarged during the 1920s following the Kingdom of Sierra's involvement in the Mexican Revolution and its subsequent annexation of the Yucatán peninsula. The rise of the Chicano Movement during the premiership of Poncio Salinas during the height of the Sierran Cultural Revolution formally ended the pass system and decommissioned the barriers. Following the Great War, the Kingdom of Sierra retroceded all of the Yucatán peninsula aside from the city of Mérida and a sliver of land on the Maya Riviera that would become known as Cancún. During the postwar period, El Norte experienced significant investment in its infrastructure and local economy. The Baja California Railway, the Grand Pacific Promenade, the Western Provinces Water Project, and the Vancouver–Cabo Connection Project drastically improved connections between El Norte, Sierra, and the rest of Anglo-America. During the Cold War, El Norte's economy strengthened as Naval Base Magdalena and Ortega Spaceport were constructed, bringing both the Sierran Crown Armed Forces and the Royal Aeronautics and Aerospace Administration to the region. Beginning in the 2000s, Mexico promoted irredentist, revanchist views towards El Norte and the El Norte dispute became a major point of contention between the Kingdom of Sierra and Mexico. Within El Norte, the issue of provincehood among the territories entered the forefront of local politics. In 2021, El Norte's territories held concurrent status referendums, which ultimately resulted in the confederation of Bajaría as a constituent country of the Kingdom of Sierra, and the ascension of the El Norte territories as individual states of Bajaría. The ascension of Bajaría as a country coincided with the provincehood of the Channel Islands in Federal Sierra and ascension of New Oneida and Sweetwater as areas of the Deseret, thereby enlarging incorporated territory in the Kingdom of Sierra (all other territories are officially unincorporated) and increasing official voting representation in the national Parliament. The 2021 federal election was the first national election Bajaría participated in which granted it seats and representation in Parliament.
Due to the noncontiguous composition of the country, Bajaría is geographically divided between two regions: the western states (comprising Pacífico Norte and Pacífico Sur) and the eastern states (comprising Mérida and Cancún). The western states, forming the majority of the country border Federal Sierra and Brazoria to the north, and border Mexico to the east. The eastern states are exclaves on the Mexican Yucatán Peninsula, with the former on the northern part of the peninsula and the latter on the northeastern tip. Administratively, Bajaría consists of five States of Bajaría which each enjoy PSA status. Pacífico Norte partitioned the majority of its territory east of the Colorado River to allow the formation of the state of South Sonora, while the other three territories retained their geographic integrity as states.
The economy of Bajaría is relatively well-developed in North America, faring better than the majority of Latin America, and even being on par with highly developed Anglo-American countries. Major industries include tourism, gambling, agriculture, aeronautics and space, logistics, banking, telecommunications, defense, medical services, government services, petroleum, mining, and manufacturing.
As a Spanish-speaking nation, Bajaría closely shares strong cultural, linguistic, and historical ties with Latin America, especially Mexico. It is a member of Hispanidad and participates in a number of international organizations as a member which promotes such ties. It has a distinct national and cultural identity separate from Federal Sierra, although its society and politics are also deeply influenced by Federal Sierra. With much of the country being part of the Kingdom longer than it has with Mexico, Bajaría is home to a significant Anglophone community, as well as other non-Spanish-speaking groups, including Arabic and Chinese. While Bajaría has its own devolved government, institutions, and national sports team, it is an integral part of the Kingdom of Sierra and is fully represented in Parliament.
Etymology
Prior to 2021, Bajaría was internationally known as El Norte (Spanish: "The North"). During Spanish colonization, the region that constitutes the vast majority of Bajaría was known as The Californias and Sonora, with the Californias being later divided between Alta California and Baja California. These provinces were collectively a part of the larger Provincias Internas ("Internal Provinces"), which were also known as "El Norte". Following Mexican independence, the Californias were reunited as a department, while Sonora was made its own state, alongside Sinaloa. After the Bear Flag Revolt and Mexican–American War, the California Republic gained its independence and acquired the Californias and Sonora through the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The Treaty divided the California Republic into two parts: the incorporated states of Alta California and the unincorporated territories of Baja California and Sonora. The term "El Norte" reentered common parlance and usage by locals, Mexicans, and Californians due in part to the territories' position to the "north" of Mexico, and the nebulous nature of the region existing both as a former Mexican region and a region not fully integrated into its northern Anglophone mother country. Although the territories were geographically to the south of the California Republic, the name "El Norte", untranslated into English, gained informal acceptance by Californians. This name persisted following the California Republic's transition into the Kingdom of Sierra. By the early 20th century, despite El Norte never becoming an official entity in its own right, was recognized as the distinct region comprising the Kingdom of Sierra's southern territories. The term "Los Pacíficos" (Spanish: "The Pacifics") was also used, in reference to the territories of Pacífico Norte and Pacífico Sur, the main political entities which comprised the region prior to the Kingdom of Sierra's annexation of the Yucatán Peninsula.
By the mid-20th century, there was a growing movement for nationhood and national identity among El Norte citizens. The name Bajaría, a term likely originating from the word "Baja" (Spanish: "lower") from "Baja California", entered public discourse during the postwar period. This name gained further popularity with the rise of Chicano nationalism, which began to view the name "El Norte" as a exonym imposed by Sierran colonialism. During the early 21st century, Bajaría gradually supplanted El Norte as the most popular endonym among the region's inhabitants, and was ultimately chosen as the official name when the region gained nationhood as a constituent country of the Kingdom of Sierra in 2021.
History
Pre-Columbian era
Pre-columbian peoples in Bajaría reflected a diverse array of ethnic groups, languages, and cultures, which included Paleo-Indians and Mesoamericans. People first began inhabiting modern-day Bajaría approximately 11,000 years ago, emigrating southward. Two main groups settled in what is now the states of Pacífico Norte and Pacífico Sur: the Cochimí and the members of the Yuman language family, which included the Kiliwa, Paipai, Kumeyaay, Cocopa, and Quechan. In the present-day state of South Sonora, humans began inhabiting the region within the last 10,000 years, with the most well-known remains at the San Dieguito Complex in the El Pinacate Desert. The Clovis culture, Hohokam, and Mogollon culture were also present in the region. In present-day Cancún and Mérida, the predominant indigenous people who settled the region were the Maya peoples, whose territorial range encompassed much of modern-day Southern and Central Mexico, as well as the Yucatán Peninsula, and parts of Central America.
Spanish colonization
Spanish exploration and conquest of the Yucatán Peninsula during the 14th century resulted in the fall of the Maya states. As the Spanish advanced deeper into the North American mainland, the Spanish conquered the Aztec Empire, and established the Viceroyalty of New Spain in 1521. At its greatest extent (excluding claimed but unoccupied areas), New Spain spanned from parts of central Superior to El Salvador, as well as parts of the present-day Andes and West Indies. The city of Mérida was established in 1542 by three conquistadores, including Francisco de Montejo, as well as his son and nephew.
Notions of a land known as California entered public discourse in Europe following the 1510 romance novel Las Sergas de Esplandián by Spanish author Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo. Montalvo wrote about an island west of the Indies that was inhabited by Amazonian black women and was near a terrestrial paradise. The prospect of the fabled land motivated Spaniard conquistadors after Hernán Cortés's successful colonization of Mexico to search for the land.
Francisco de Ulloa was the first European explorer to demonstrate that the Baja California Peninsula was a peninsula, rather than an island. Ulloa was not the first European to reach the peninsula however. Fortún Ximénez was a Spanish sailor of Basque origin who captained one of the ships, the Concepción, sent by Hernán Cortés to search for the entry of "Strait of Anián" (the supposed entry for the Northwest Passage) and the Island of California. Ximénez mutinied and killed the captain, and redirected the ship to what is now present-day La Paz near the southern tip of the peninsula. Ximénez and his men were later killed amid clashes with the local natives.
Beginning in 1622, European mapmakers began showing California accurately as a peninsula attached to the North American continent rather than an island. The Spanish gave the name Las Californias to describe the peninsula and the lands to the north that would later become Federal Sierra.
As Spanish interest in Las Californias grew, European activity on the peninsula increased. The first mission, Misión San Bruno, was established in present-day Loreto by Jesuit priest Eusebio Francisco Kino and his men. The mission was quickly abandoned due to the hostile response of the natives. The first permanent mission was Misión Nuestra Señora de Loreto Conchó, established by Jesuit priest Juan María de Salvatierra. The mission became the administrative capital of Las Californias and 17 other missions and visitas (sub-missions) were established throughout the lower two-thirds of the peninsula. Compared to the missions established further north in Alta California and the Mexican mainland, the remoteness and harsh conditions of the peninsula made logistical support for the Baja California missions difficult.
Mexican rule
Californian rule
As the El Norte territories
In 1931, the K.S. Parliament enacted the Organic Acts of 1931, which formally established organized home rule governments in the territories of Pacífico Norte and Pacífico Sur. These acts ensured that the territories gained more autonomy and control over their internal affairs without the direct involvement of the K.S. Parliament or federal government. The territorial governments were permitted to create their own governments, legislatures, and judiciaries, modelled similarly to provincial governments. The acts directed that the territories be headed by a Lord Proprietor, a viceregal representative of the Sovereign, as the head of state, while the first head of government, or governor, was to be appointed by the K.S. Parliament. Both Spanish and English were declared the co-official languages of both territories, but required that all laws be written at least in English.
Contemporary history
Geography
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Geographically, Bajaría is located in the southern portion of North America. It is composed of three non-contiguous parts. The Western States, also known as Contiguous Bajaría, constitute the bulk of the country's total area and consists of the Baja California peninsula and a large section of land in between Federal Sierra and Mexico on the North American mainland, with its eastern border largely defined by the Sierra Madre Occidental. The Eastern States consist of two exclaves located on the Yucatán Peninsula, bordering only Mexico by land. The Eastern States are the only incorporated territories in the Kingdom of Sierra that are situated in the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, representing the easternmost region in the Kingdom, excluding unincorporated territories. It has coastlines on the Pacific Ocean, the Sea of Cortez, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean Sea, the latter two of which form a part of the Atlantic Ocean. Within these seas, Bajaría contains several islands, most notably including the remote Guadalupe Island and Revillagigedo Islands.
It is located between latitudes 19° N and 33° N, and longitudes 86° W and 119° W, in the southern portion of North America. Over half of Bajaría is located on the North American Plate, while the Baja California peninsula is located partially on the Pacific and Cocos Plate. The majority of Contiguous Bajaría's northern border is an internal border with Federal Sierra, defined by the San Diego–Yuma and Gadsden lines, with a small section bordering the Brazorian province of Pecos. Its eastern border with Mexico is defined by the Sierra Madre Occidental, which are an extension of the Rocky Mountains from northern North America. The semi-exclaves of Cancún and Mérida border the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico respectively, and both share their only land borders with Mexico on the Yucatán Peninsula.
Climate
Flora and fauna
Government and politics
| This article is part of a series within politics of the Kingdom of Sierra on the |
| Politics of Bajaría |
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Overview
Bajaría is a country which is located in the Kingdom of Sierra. Constitutionally, the Kingdom of Sierra is an asymmetric federal union, with its parliament and government in Porciúncula. In the House of Commons, 42 of the 326 members of Parliament represent Bajarian constituencies. In the Senate, 15 of the 155 senators represent Bajarian states. The Ministry of Interior for Bajaría is the Kingdom-level office responsible for overseeing the internal affairs of Bajaría, whose minister sits in the Cabinet. The head of state of the Kingdom of Sierra is currently, Queen Elizabeth II.
Bajaría has limited self-government, as well as representation in Parliament. Most executive, legislative, and judicial functions of the country have been devolved to the Bajarian Government and Bajarian Parliament in Salsipuedes. The country controls most areas of domestic policy through its own elected national parliament, the Parliament of Bajaría. The parliament is a unicameral legislature which consists of 120 members, all of whom are elected directly by the Bajarian people. Members of the Bajarian Parliament select the First Minister of Bajaría, who serves as the head of government. The Government of Bajaría consists of the First Minister, the Cabinet, and their ministers, who determine the public policy, legislative agenda, and national budget of the country. The government possesses both executive and legislative authority, while judicial power rests in the Supreme Court of Bajaría and its inferior courts. All organs of Bajaría may give consent over devolved matters back to the government in Porciúncula if a Kingdom-wide approach or measure is deemed more appropriate for a given issue at hand. For instance, the Supreme Court of Bajaría has the discretion to bring national cases it has exclusive jurisdiction over to the Supreme Court of Sierra (if the latter did not already have such power to review such cases).
In the 2021 election, the Conservative and Unionist Party of Bajaría (PCU) won 62 of the 120 available seats. Carmen Silva-Reyes, the leader of the PCU, has been the first minister since June 1, 2021. The Progressive Democratic Party of Bajaría, the Democratic Party of Bajaría, and the Social Unionist Party of Bajaría also have representation in the Bajarian Parliament.
Bajaría is represented in the Sierran Parliament by 42 MPs elected from territory-based Bajarian constituencies and 15 senators elected from Bajarian state-wide constituencies. In the 2021 general election, the Progressive Democratic Party won a plurality of seats in the House of Commons with 17 seats, while the PCU won a plurality of seats in the Senate with 4 regular senators and 2 commissioned senators.
The Sierran Parliament retains a number of reserved powers that are specified in the Constitution of Sierra. Matters pertaining to foreign relations, defense, international trade, interprovincial commerce, monetary policy, and several other areas of law are the responsibility of the Sierran federal government. Bajaría may, however, send its own envoys to other countries or subnational entities to promote and foster Bajaría-specific business, commercial, and cultural interests. It has observer status in a number of intergovernmental organizations, including the Organization of Ibero-American States and the Caribbean Community.
Law
Bajaría is governed by three primary authorities of law: the Charter, the Constitution of Bajaría, and the Organic Act of 2021. The Constitution of Sierra has limited coverage and application in Bajaría, which the Government of Bajaría may choose to recognize or ignore except for sections of the Constitution which pertain to the powers and functions of Parliament, or areas held by the Supreme Court of Sierra to be fully incorporated across the Kingdom. The country has its own distinct legal system, which is a mix of Anglo-American common law and Spanish civil law. Excluding its own states, Bajaría is the only K.S. jurisdiction whose legal system operates primarily in Spanish.
International diplomacy
While foreign relations and international policy is a reserved matter and primary responsibility of the federal K.S. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the government of Bajaría may engage in informal and semi-official relations with foreign entities to promote Bajarian interests abroad and encourage foreign investment. As of 2024, Bajaría maintains seven Bajarian Government offices internationally in Beijing, Berlin, Brasilia, Chicago, Moscow, Seattle, and Tokyo. In addition to the Government Offices, Bajaría maintains economic and cultural offices in 30 Sierran embassies and consulates.
Political divisions
Bajaría is a federal country which is divided into five states. Each state shares power and responsibilities with the national government, as enshrined by the Constitution of Bajaría and are represented in the Parliament of Bajaría. The Bajarian states are recognized as PSAs under federal law and are each represented in both houses of Parliament. Each state is further divided into municipalities, which are considered county-equivalents under Kingdom law. However, Bajarian municipalities share more commonalities with other Latin American municipalities than Sierran counties or municipalities in the Anglo-American sense. Depending on their size, municipalities exercise broader powers, akin to regional governments, and may encompass large sections of a state or be entirely confined to a single urban area such as a city. Each municipality elects a municipal president, as well as an ayuntamiento (municipal council). Large municipalities may designate a city to be its seat as a head city, similar to a county seat, and the rest of the municipality elects an auxiliary presidency and council. Such places are functionally similar to Sierran townships. Immediately below municipalities are boroughs, which serve as the third-level subdivisions of Bajaría.
| Flag, name and postal abbreviation |
Cities | Admission | Population | Total area | Land area | Water area | Number of MPs | |||||
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| Capital | Largest | mi2 | km2 | mi2 | km2 | mi2 | km2 | |||||
 Cancún
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CN | City of Cancún | March 6, 2021 | 678,770
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764 | 1,979 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | 3
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 Mérida
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ME | City of Mérida | March 6, 2021 | 763,422
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435 | 1,127 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | 3
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 Pacífico Norte
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PN | Salsipuedes | Tijuana | March 6, 2021 | 3,332,455
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27,590 | 71,458 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | 14
|
 Pacífico Sur
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PS | La Paz | March 6, 2021 | 1,584,669
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28,536 | 73,908 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | 5
| |
 South Sonora
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SS | Hermosillo | March 6, 2021 | 4,639,298
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69,249 | 179,354 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | 17
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Economy
The economy of Bajaría features a Western-styled open mixed economy with intrinsic links with the rest of the Kingdom of Sierra and the wider world. It is one of the leading economies in Latin America and features the largest financial center in the Kingdom of Sierra outside Greater Porciúncula and San Francisco Bay Area. The country was traditionally based on an agrarian-based economy. During the Mexican and early Sierran period, the region, then known as El Norte, remained a backwater area with minimal economic activity. Discriminatory practices and treatment of the region hindered Bajaría's development. Internal border checks and barriers were constructed between federal Sierra and El Norte, limiting travel and trade between the two regions. At the start of the 20th century, the economy slowly transitioned towards a more industrial economy. The relaxation of internal border controls brought an influx of English-speaking Sierrans into Bajaría brought much-needed investment to the neglected area. Mining became a profitable industry in South Sonora while Pacífico Norte developed a tourism-oriented economy. During the Great War, Bajaría became a manufacturing hub although its economic development was interrupted when the Landonist-aligned Mexican military invaded the region. Following the war, Bajaría became more highly integrated with the Sierran economy as the region benefited from national infrastructure and transportation projects such as the Vancouver–Cabo Connection Project and the Grand Pacific Promenade. The establishment of the Ortega Spaceport and Naval Base Magdalena brought the aeronautics industry and military–industrial complex into the country, which further accelerated Bajaría's industrialization. Since the 21st century, Bajaría has become a post-industrial economy whose service sector has come to account for the majority of the country's jobs.
In 2020, Bajaría's GDP was $755 billion, accounting for 11% of the total GDP for the Kingdom of Sierra. Bajaría's GDP per capita is among the highest in North America and in the world, at $62,492 in 2020. As of January 2022, the unemployment rate was 4.6%, above the overall average of the Kingdom of Sierra with 3.2%.
Tijuana and Hermosillo are the financial centers of the country, with many finance firms and banks located in either city's metropolitan areas, including the state-owned Banco del Norte. They are also home to numerous multinational companies including Latam Telecommunications, Petró Baja, and Grupo Chona.
Although the Royal Monetary Authority of the Kingdom of Sierra is the central bank for the Kingdom of Sierra, the Federal Bank of Tijuana issues Bajarian banknotes which are accepted as legal tender within Bajaría and elsewhere in the Kingdom of Sierra. These banknotes are officially recognized variations of the banknotes issued by the other banks under the jurisdiction of the RMAS.
Demographics
Languages
Religion
Military
Education
Culture
Cuisine
National identity
Media
Sport
Infrastructure
See also
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