The plot of my book required liquefaction of the soil in south-west Singapore (sorry, my Singaporean friends). In order to achieve this, I calculated the impact occurring just off the west coast of Luzon island. This achieves the other objective of funneling a tsunami towards the Malayan peninsula that could bring enough sediment to bury the skyscrapers toppled by the earthquakes. Regional powers like China, Japan and Vietnam would be wiped out. The sediment would fill the shallow Johor straits, joining Singapore to the mainland. Most of the population of Singapore, Malaysia, and southern Thailand would be lost.
In the following centuries, societies would emerge from the survivors - in the southern part of Malaysia, and northern Thailand and Cambodia. The southern part of Malaysia, the filled-in Johor straits and parts of Singapore would have rich sediment deposits that facilitate agriculture, allowing agrarian societies to flourish. The survivors in Thailand would be pushed southward due to migration from surviving Chinese populations. Gradually the former Thai populations will move into the vacant land in the Malayan peninsula.
Cultural identities require a critical mass of people to maintain. Below critical mass, most cultural elements and traditions are lost, with religion being the first to disappear, and language surviving the longest. Language is essential for survival. Structured religion is only necessary to create order and regulate behavior in large, complex societies.
When the migrants from former Thailand meet the inhabitants of the Malayan peninsula, an amalgamated culture is formed. Historically, migrating populations are likely to be more militarily advanced, due to necessity (they need to take land by force). This means, the culture of the “northerners” will come to dominate. The names of places still retain an echo of their past names. The names of people are derived from the Thai/Sanskrit based names, mutated phonetically over centuries. I used an AI model to simulate the phonetic mutations.
When the societies gain sufficient mass and complexity, a new structured religion forms, displacing shamanistic worship. The society is stagnating at a medieval, pre-industrial level. Historically, the medieval times were characterized by weak ruling structures constantly at war with each other, held together by structured religion. This is the situation in the world where my story takes place.
➡️ Place Names