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HyruleThe Kingdom of Hyrule is a fictional land portrayed in the Legend of Zelda video game series created by Nintendo and industry legend Shigeru Miyamoto. Hyrule in the series The land of Hyrule, first depicted in The Legend of Zelda, released in July of 1987 for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), was the mythical backdrop for the adventures of a boy-to-hero character, Link. Link battles his way through different areas and terrains of Hyrule and through nine levels. Your quest in Hyrule was to reassemble the Triforce of Wisdom and rescue the princess Zelda who was being held captive by the evil theif Ganon. Hyrule was the home land of a mystical triangular object known as the Triforce, which was split into three separate pieces for you to recover before Ganon and foil his plans to rule with an iron fist. In later editions of the Zelda series of games (for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Nintendo 64, Game Boy Advance, and Nintendo GameCube) more characters and mysteries of the land of Hyrule were unveiled and explained. Although the original Legend of Zelda was the first game to depict the land of Hyrule, it was not the first chronologically. A later game in the series, Ocarina of Time, was set in Hyrule as well, but before the events in the original. The chronologically last Zelda game is Link to the Past, according to the "official" word from Miyamoto, not The Adventure of Link as some sources stated. This is not necessarily the only correct timeline theory, though Miyamoto has stated that he likes to leave certain areas up to the fans. Also, it is important to note that as described in , Hyrule was flooded after . The few survivors that remained lived on the remains of Hyrule, which appear to be islands. At the end of the game, Link sails off to find another Golden Land—another Hyrule. Therefore, there may in fact be more than one Hyrule. Many of the designated areas of Hyrule have traversed through the series, notably The Lost Woods, Death Mountain, and Lake Hylia. Several games in the series take place away from Hyrule: Link's Awakening (Koholint Island), Majora's Mask (Termina), and Oracle of Ages/Oracle of Seasons (Holodrum and Labrynna). Hyrulian history Formation of Hyrule Hyrule was formed by the goddesses Din, Nayru and Farore. According to Hyrulian legend, Din created the physical geography of the realm, Farore was believed to have created the flora and fauna, and Nayru is believed to have given the laws of physics. Once the goddesses had completed their tasks, they departed for the heavens, and left behind them three golden triangles. Into these, they gave their power to govern all things; this became known as the Triforce. The Hyrulian Wars The races of Hyrule worshipped the Triforce and its incredible power, and lived together in harmony for a short time. However, each race began to covet the power granted by the relic, and in time, open hostilities broke out between the peoples of Hyrule. The Hyrulian Wars, sometimes known as the Great War, or the Triforce War, were fought between all the races of Hyrule bar the Kokiri, who were protected by the Great Deku Tree. All of the races desired the Triforce for themselves, and much blood was shed over it before seven wise sages sealed the Triforce away in mirrored realm of Hyrule, known as the Sacred Realm. However, during the wars, two important events happened; Ganondorf, Gerudo King of Thieves entered the Hyrulian Wars, and a young woman sent her child, Link, to go and live with the Kokiri. After the realization that the Triforce was well out of their reach, all the races, including the Gerudo, seemingly backed down and swore allegiance to the King of Hyrule, and so an uneasy peace fell across the kingdom. The Golden Age During this peace, Ganondorf studied the legends of the Triforce in an attempt to discover a way into the Sacred Realm. He discovered that the way into the Sacred Realm was sealed by relics of the four races who did not seek to obtain the Triforce during the Hyrulian Wars. These races were the Royal Family of Hyrule, who sought to protect the Triforce during the wars, with their Ocarina of Time; the Kokiri, who did not participate in the wars, with their Kokiri's Emerald; and the Zora and Goron races, allied with the Royal Family during the wars, with the Zora's Sapphire and Goron's Ruby. These relics, when used together, would open the Door of Time in the Temple of Time, and with the power of the legendary Master Sword, allow passage into the Sacred Realm. Neither Ganondorf, nor the Gerudo had the power to take these by force, and so Ganondorf became advisor to the King of Hyrule, where he hoped to steal the Ocarina of Time from the King's daughter, Princess Zelda, and threatened the Kokiri, Zora and Goron races. And so Ganondorf bided his time, and a dark shadow fell across Hyrule, so strong that it even began to affect certain sensitive Hyrulian people as they slept... Hyrulian Geography Physical Geography The land of Hyrule in the time of Ocarina is very varied. The landscape is dominated by a large volcanic mountain range and its principle volcano, Death Mountain, in the northeast of the country. To the far west, is a large desert, Desert Colossus, bordered by a canyon that is a feeder river for a large lake, Lake Hylia in the southwest. Immediately east of Lake Hylia is a large woodland area, known as the Lost Woods. The river feeding Lake Hylia loops around the country to a corrie lake and waterfall in the far east, known as Zora's Domain. The remainder of the country is taken up by a flat valley floor known as Hyrule Field, with a large hill in the centre of the field. Human Geography Human activity in Hyrule has been somewhat limited. There is no evidence of farming on Hyrule Field (perhaps there was farming there at one point, but it is no longer fertile), but there is a windmill, suggesting farming somewhere in the kingdom. The Hyrulian economy, judging from the state of Hyrule Castle, seems fairly strong, but dependant on fisheries and trade. Several settlements have sprung up around Hyrule, the capital being Hyrule Castle Town, with the other major settlements being Gerudo's Fortress, Kakariko Village, Zora's Domain, and Kokiri Forest. There is a great amount of trade between three of the settlements, however Gerudo's Fortress and Kokiri's Forest are mainly secular. There is one city in Hyrule, Goron's City, but this, again, is separated from the other settlements, being high atop Death Mountain and unreachable by many citizens. The major human landmarks in Hyrule are Hyrule Castle and the temples that have been constructed around the kingdom. Races and governments There are several separate races in Hyrule; however, most of them swear allegiance to the Hyrulian monarchy after the so-called "Hyrulian Wars". Gerudo The wasteland to the west is governed by the Gerudo, a purely feminist race. Despite this, (implied by a Gossip Stone outside of the Temple of Time) Gerudo manage to populate by coming into Hyrule Market Town to have one-night stands. One male is born every hundred years. This male is then proclaimed King of Thieves by the Gerudo, but the Gerudo are really more of a dictatorship. Whilst there are no males, the Gerudo is more of a communism. However, the Gerudo are right-wing; they believe in capital punishment, and only swear allegiance to the Hyrulian monarchy since the Triforce disappeared. Kokiri The forest to the southeast is governed by the Great Deku Tree, who watches over a realm of children who will never grow up. The Kokiri and the Great Deku Tree are pacifists, and thus did not get involved in the Hyrulian Wars. They swear true allegiance to the Hyrulian monarchy, and are simply an region of the Kingdom of Hyrule. Zora The Zora govern an underground cavern, beneath a corrie lake to the east. They are ruled by a King who goes by the same name, and are completely self-sufficient. The Zora worship a great fish who resides in the lake above their cavern, known as Jabu-Jabu, and believe their fate is tied to its. They are allies of the Hyrulian monarchy, but are really a completely separate kingdom. Goron To the northeast lies the Goron City. They are a true communism, who name their leaders "Brother", as they call each other. The workers mine rocks below the city for the race to eat, and thus get a portion of the rocks for themselves. The city itself is an intricate labyrinth set inside Death Mountain itself, and is connected to the Fire Temple. The Goron swear allegiance to the Hyrule Royal Family, but again, they are a separate kingdom in their own right. Hyrule Royal Family The Hyrule Royal Family itself rules the land to the north of Hyrule, and has a large army of soldiers to protect itself. They control much of the affairs of the country. They technically won the Hyrulian Wars by imprisoning the Triforce, but the power of the Gerudo is believed to be much stronger. The King rules the land, and his daughter, Princess Zelda, is next in line for the throne. In Wind Waker Physical Geography By the time of Wind Waker, Hyrule is beneath the ocean, and only a collection mountaintops are visible above the water. Hyrule is a archipelago known as the Great Sea. Each island is fairly varied, the largest of which are Outlook Island, Dragon Roost Island and the Forsaken Fortress. There are large expanses of empty ocean between each island, but not much else. Underneath the ocean, however, Hyrule is still intact, protected by the power of the Triforce and the Master Sword. Hyrule river has eroded the land around Hyrule Castle, leaving it atop a pillar of rock. Each side of Hyrule is connected by a bridge. To the west of Hyrule Castle is a large mountain range, and all around the river is farmland. Human Geography As Hyrule and its citizens are imprisoned beneath the ocean, there is no activity on the sea bed. Above the ocean however, Hyrulian commerce has improved considerably. Most of the food is gathered from fishing and small farms. There is also a large trade boom with the Gorons, who seemed to have moved off elsewhere. There is only one major city on the ocean, on Windfall Island, however, a large pirate base did exist in the extreme north-west. A large tower is erected someway throughout the game in the centre of the ocean, but barring that, there is not much else. Races and governments The governments of this time are not very powerful, as there are now very little people to form powerful nations. However, there are many diverse races living in and around the Great Sea. Koroks The Koroks live on a small island with the Great Deku Tree, who may be related to the same character in Ocarina of Time. Under the orders of the Great Deku Tree, they move throughout the ocean, planting forests in the hope that it will allow the expansion of the mountaintops to create larger islands. The Koroks may be an evolved form of the Kokiri. Humans and Hyrulians Strangely, humans seem to have appeared in Hyrule, differentiated from Hyrulians by the fact that they do not have pointy elf like ears. They work and live in small merchant vessels around the ocean, but are mainly based in Windfall Island and Outlook Island, where they enjoy trade with the other races around the Great Sea. Gorons The Gorons now live in some unspecified place on the Great Sea and trade with the Hyrulians left after the flood. Hyrule Royal Family The Hyrule Royal Family still exist, but have no influence whatsoever on day-to-day affairs, as Princess Zelda is unaware of who she is, and the King of Hyrule is frozen at the bottom of the ocean. They do, however, still hold the parts of the Triforce of Wisdom. Rito A strange race of Avians, the Rito, have developed a strong culture on Dragon Roost Island. They mainly serve as the postmen of the Great Sea, but are fairly populous. They have a strong relationship with the Hyrulians. They may be the evolved form of the Zora. Pirates Several pirate groups have sprung up around Hyrule. They did have a large base in the north-west of the Great Sea before this was taken from them by Ganon. They plunder the ocean in search of treasure, of which there is certainly an abundance. Ganon Ganon seems to have somehow broken free from the seal which the sages placed on him in Ocarina of Time. He still has control of the Triforce of Power, and is actively seeking the other two pieces, with a large army of moblins. He has taken over the Forsaken Fortress, and is searching the ocean for Princess Zelda.
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