Panem
An unspecified time before the current date, the face of the Earth changed and modern civilization was seemingly destroyed. It is unknown precisely what caused the "end of the world", but major landmasses changed shape as the sea level rose to unknown heights around the planet. Some time after the end of the world as we knew it, a nation was established in North America that would soon come to be known as Panem. It is unknown precisely when Panem was established and how long it has existed, though it is certain that Panem has been around for more than seventy-five years, and it's entirely possible for it to be at least a century or two old.
Panem eventually grew large enough that it was segmented into thirteen separate districts, each responsible for producing goods of a particular industry to serve the growing needs of the nation, and all operating under the auspices of Panem's oppressive Capitol. Its exact method of expansion is unknown; it is possible that some of the separate districts may have even once been smaller, separate nations that were eventually annexed by Panem.
The Dark Days
Approximately seventy-four years before the events of The Hunger Games trilogy, the various districts of Panem rebelled against the Capitol, primarily due to the oppresive fashion in which the Capitol government ruled over the districts. It is unknown how long the rebellion lasted or the exact number of casualties on either side (although the Capitol claims that for every dead Capitol citizen, two rebels died), but by the end of the conflict, the Capitol had quelled the rebellion, defeating twelve of the districts and obliterating the thirteenth entirely.
The Hunger Games
In the wake of the rebellion, the Capitol established the Hunger Games, an annual event in which twenty-four children between the ages of twelve and eighteen, one boy and one girl from each district, are chosen from a lottery and entered into a gladitorial competition where they must fight each other to the death until only one remains standing.
The event served two purposes. The first was to demonstrate the overwhelming power the Capitol had over the districts by taking their children by force and forcing them to slay each other in a no-rules competition. It was proof that the Capitol's control over its people was so inexorable and unstoppable that they could do something so sadistic as to force the children of their conquered foes to slay each other in a battle royale. The second purpose was purely for entertainment. The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in the same vein as a reality show, its entrants practically considered celebrities and the events themselves dramatized and glorified.
The Capitol
The Capitol is the biggest city in Panem and serves as the nation's central seat of government. It is located in an area formerly known as the Rocky Mountains and is surrounded by the thirteen outlying districts. The free residents of the Capitol are generally considered the wealthiest (and most decadent) of all Panem, and the city's prosperity is fueled by the industries and forced labor of the districts beyond. While it is a major territory, it is not considered one of the thirteen districts. The people are most known for their "creative" outfits, and crazy sense of fashion, even to the extent of dying the color of their own skin, or even having whiskers implanted
Districts
The nation of Panem is separated into a total of thirteen nation-states known as districts, twelve of which are recognized as operational by the Capitol, and each being solely responsible for producing, procuring, or refining goods in a particular industry as dictated by the Capitol. All of the districts are subject to the unrelenting will of the authoritarian Capitol, and have no known influence concerning the national politics of Panem beyond their own individual territories.
The districts barely interact with each other, so each district generally has a unique culture unaffected by the other districts which strongly influenced by the goods it produces. Welfare levels vary significantly, and are often dependent on the goods it produces; some districts, such as 11 and 12, are far more impoverished than wealthier districts like 1,2, and 4, though apparently no district is nearly as wealthy as the Capitol itself.
Originally, there were thirteen districts in Panem. During the Dark Days, the 13th district was obliterated by the Capitol and is no longer recognized as operational. Each District provides something different to the Capitol
Career Dictricts
Many of the wealthier districts such as Districts 1, 2 and 4, known as "Career Districts", have a more positive orientation toward the Hunger Games. As residents do not generally face extreme poverty and malnutrition as they do in more impoverished districts, their tributes are generally healthy and strong. In these districts, it is not uncommon for children to volunteer to be tributes, as winning the Games is held in highest regard in these districts. Although it is against the rules of the Games, children in these districts are often specifically raised to participate in the Hunger Games, and thus are trained in the arts of combat and survival. Thus, they are typically known as Career Tribute, or "Careers" for short.
An unspecified time before the current date, the face of the Earth changed and modern civilization was seemingly destroyed. It is unknown precisely what caused the "end of the world", but major landmasses changed shape as the sea level rose to unknown heights around the planet. Some time after the end of the world as we knew it, a nation was established in North America that would soon come to be known as Panem. It is unknown precisely when Panem was established and how long it has existed, though it is certain that Panem has been around for more than seventy-five years, and it's entirely possible for it to be at least a century or two old.
Panem eventually grew large enough that it was segmented into thirteen separate districts, each responsible for producing goods of a particular industry to serve the growing needs of the nation, and all operating under the auspices of Panem's oppressive Capitol. Its exact method of expansion is unknown; it is possible that some of the separate districts may have even once been smaller, separate nations that were eventually annexed by Panem.
The Dark Days
Approximately seventy-four years before the events of The Hunger Games trilogy, the various districts of Panem rebelled against the Capitol, primarily due to the oppresive fashion in which the Capitol government ruled over the districts. It is unknown how long the rebellion lasted or the exact number of casualties on either side (although the Capitol claims that for every dead Capitol citizen, two rebels died), but by the end of the conflict, the Capitol had quelled the rebellion, defeating twelve of the districts and obliterating the thirteenth entirely.
The Hunger Games
In the wake of the rebellion, the Capitol established the Hunger Games, an annual event in which twenty-four children between the ages of twelve and eighteen, one boy and one girl from each district, are chosen from a lottery and entered into a gladitorial competition where they must fight each other to the death until only one remains standing.
The event served two purposes. The first was to demonstrate the overwhelming power the Capitol had over the districts by taking their children by force and forcing them to slay each other in a no-rules competition. It was proof that the Capitol's control over its people was so inexorable and unstoppable that they could do something so sadistic as to force the children of their conquered foes to slay each other in a battle royale. The second purpose was purely for entertainment. The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in the same vein as a reality show, its entrants practically considered celebrities and the events themselves dramatized and glorified.
The Capitol
The Capitol is the biggest city in Panem and serves as the nation's central seat of government. It is located in an area formerly known as the Rocky Mountains and is surrounded by the thirteen outlying districts. The free residents of the Capitol are generally considered the wealthiest (and most decadent) of all Panem, and the city's prosperity is fueled by the industries and forced labor of the districts beyond. While it is a major territory, it is not considered one of the thirteen districts. The people are most known for their "creative" outfits, and crazy sense of fashion, even to the extent of dying the color of their own skin, or even having whiskers implanted
Districts
The nation of Panem is separated into a total of thirteen nation-states known as districts, twelve of which are recognized as operational by the Capitol, and each being solely responsible for producing, procuring, or refining goods in a particular industry as dictated by the Capitol. All of the districts are subject to the unrelenting will of the authoritarian Capitol, and have no known influence concerning the national politics of Panem beyond their own individual territories.
The districts barely interact with each other, so each district generally has a unique culture unaffected by the other districts which strongly influenced by the goods it produces. Welfare levels vary significantly, and are often dependent on the goods it produces; some districts, such as 11 and 12, are far more impoverished than wealthier districts like 1,2, and 4, though apparently no district is nearly as wealthy as the Capitol itself.
Originally, there were thirteen districts in Panem. During the Dark Days, the 13th district was obliterated by the Capitol and is no longer recognized as operational. Each District provides something different to the Capitol
Career Dictricts
Many of the wealthier districts such as Districts 1, 2 and 4, known as "Career Districts", have a more positive orientation toward the Hunger Games. As residents do not generally face extreme poverty and malnutrition as they do in more impoverished districts, their tributes are generally healthy and strong. In these districts, it is not uncommon for children to volunteer to be tributes, as winning the Games is held in highest regard in these districts. Although it is against the rules of the Games, children in these districts are often specifically raised to participate in the Hunger Games, and thus are trained in the arts of combat and survival. Thus, they are typically known as Career Tribute, or "Careers" for short.
