What Is the Mando Culture? (Page 1 of 3)

What is Hip?

Mandalorians are a peoples that will devote 100% to whatever they do. One of the big downfalls of a warring, nomadic society is that losses are suffered in battle.  So after defeats the Mandalorians are put in a boom and bust cycle of sorts. 

During the boom they are constantly gaining new technologies from conquered planets.

The bust would include the Mandalorians being forced to settle on a planet into the farmers we see today.  As they cannot haveothers provide for their troops.

They Mandalorians we know are currently in the bust phase.  They have just come off a devastating civil war and exhasution of resources during the Imperial Era.  Only now in Karen's Mandos are we seeing them beginning to boom.  From the rediscovery of beskar to the whole Verpine deal I hope they become the force of Mandalorians we all know from the Old Republic Era in the Correllian Insurrection.

I was more refering to them being resilient.  And more of a metophorical thing.  Because there of course things like rasing children and aring for Mandalore to do while others are out being conquerers.

Yes there is much about Mandalorian culture in Traviss' books, especially in Triple Zero and True Colors. Imbedded in the nature of all languages there is much of Mandalorian culture in Mando'a. Language is very importaint in any culture or society. ( Side note... esp. for LotR fans. Tolkien knew this. So as to fully develope his cultures and societies for Middle Earth he created languages for them, ading in their cultural idenities and values.) 

I am not sure what I personally feel that Mandalorian culture is. I think i am more of an intepreter of facts, a channeler of sorts, so i don't know what I think. But what I did find is this: http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Mandalorian#Culture

I know that wiki is not cannon and not always accurate. But this should be at least a little helpful, even if its just supporting existing ideas.

But this leaves us to question... What exactly is a "Mando style of life"? That too could be open to interpretation.

I know there are the "6 tenants" that a Mando is supposed to live by, but I feel that it is more than that. I think part of it is a certain level of respect of self. That respect pushes Mando's to be the best that they can be, which leads them to be great warriors.

ummmmmm, they have a race. They are very, very powerful. umm, jedi have defeated them. They wear really cool armour. They have awesome weapons. They wear helmets. They have spikes on their sholder pads. They sometimes have jetpacks. They kidnapped boba and turned him into a feared  mandalorian. that's all i know , i think.......

let me add a quote:

"Mandalorians were compulsive adopters, and not just of kids. They seemed to want to collect skills, qualities, technology, any advantage, that wasn't nailed down."---Jaina Solo, Legacy of the Force, Revelation.

excellent book, by the way. anyways, that's another way of saying--they have adopted many things over time--weapons, people, languages, tools, etc---but their culture has scarcely changed at all over millenia. I like the boom and bust model. Well put.

Don't worry--NJO is where I got a lot of my view on the Force. It's a great series, and you'll get to Legacy before too long.

Those are a couple of good points right there.  Unlike the Spartans  *as far as I know; might be wrong, as I'm no authority on Spartan culture*  Mandalorians adopted outsiders eagerly IF they fit they Mando way of life/thinking.  And also, Mando women were expected to be warriors as well.

I don't dispute these things; perhapes your comparison is better then mine.  It's the individual mindset that connected the Spartans and the Mandos in my mind.  You know what I'm talking about if you saw the movie  300.  The part where the Arkadian *spelling* and the Spartan are looking down on the massive Persian army and the Spartan smiles; wonding if there's someone down there who is able to give him the 'Beautiful Death' *or was it Perfect Death?  need to watch it again.....*

I still challenge the idea that when the Mandalorians are in their 'Boom' phase  *see Sev's post above if you don't know what I'm talking about.....great post again, Sev* that they are farmers/miners.  And I still don't understand the resistace some have to the idea that the Mando's would use slavery/worker droids to do those tasks for them.  We know they DON'T value life as we do, in that they gain Honor and Rep. by KILLING PEOPLE!!!  *worthy oppenent when they can, but still....*  Look what they did to the Cathars and others during the Mandalorian Wars.  What was it Canderous said?  'The THOUSANDS I"ve KILLED, the WORLDS I"ve BURNED, I weep for my past," not a very nice guy really; cirtainly not someone I would expect to shocked or appauled by slavery/worker droids doing is home tasks so he can go out and ravage some other civilization. 

And just a note about the Mando's being a totally Nomadic population.  That's a word that's constantly thrown around, when we all KNOW they have a home base, the Planet Mandalore and whatever planets are in it's system!  When the Clans are away blowing stuff up, THEY live in a nomadic fashion, but they are not a Nomadic people; not as I understand the meaning of the word 'Nomadic'

Wow, that was a mouthful        Any counter/supporting thoughts?

Well, again, I"m primarily talking about the 'Boom' area of the Mandalorians; the Mando's just before the Mandalorian Wars, and the ideals of Jaster's True Mandalorians.  Yes many Mandalorians were farmers during the era the Vong messed up the planet, that was the Mandalorians in the 'Bust' phase; a phase they've never recovered from since the Mandalorian Wars with the exception of some minor groups.

I Again Repeat, I am PRIMARILY talking about the Mando's of the BOOM era as described by Sev, NOT the Mando's of the post-Mandalorian Civil War, or any time in-between then and the end of the Mandalorian Wars with the possable exception of Jaster's True Mandalorians.  You can't compare the Mando's of Boba's generation with those of the Mandalorian Wars, as the new-era Mandalorians are for the most part a totally different people.  I have never *that I recall*  tried to claim that the Mando's of Boba's era were NOT farmers etc.  It's the old-school generations that I'm talking about; the REAL Mandalorian culutre, as it was before the defeat by Revan.

As you can see, Werda Verd, I totally agree. 

However, you arn't desciribing a nomadic CULTURE, but group from it who chose to live a nomadic life. 

'From Webster's New World Dictionary:'  "Nomad: 1. a memberof a tribe or people having no permanent home, but moving about constantly in search of food, pasture, etc.   2. Any wanderer who has no fixed home"

Everyone's description  *including mine*  fit's #2, in that when Crusading or doing something in that line, INDIVIDUAL Mando's wander and live a Nomad's life.  But the culture itself does not fit #1, ESPECIALLY if you guys are right about farming, mining, etc.  A true nomadic culture would almost HAVE to fit my view of them, as the primary source of food/income for nomads is to hunt, and the StarWars equivilent for hunting would be maurading and raiding; a warrior lift that I have been describing in my earlier posts

yeah, I understand.  Almost all the new books out there are about Jango, Boba, and the few new Mandalorians that are out there.  All I really know about the old Mandalorians is what I've gleaned from KOTOR and other places like that.  Considering what little there is on them, that's about all anybody knows about them   

But that's why we can debate the issue; becuase we know so little.  It's still up for speculation.  Based on what we know from KOTOR and such sorces, I believe the OLD Mando's lived a Sparten, or perhapes as Vipera suggested, a  Maori style of life.  And it's this old fashion way of living that some *if not most; that's not for sure either* later Mandalorians like Jaster, Jango, and Boba modeled themselves after to one degree or another.

Or at least that's how I see it