Romulan

The Romulans, a fictional race in the Star Trek universe, are descended from Vulcans and are characterized as being deceitful, cunning, and treacherous. They are the dominant race of the Romulan Star Empire, one of the larger empires in the Beta Quadrant of the Milky Way galaxy. more...

They made their first appearance in the 1966 episode "Balance of Terror". The Romulans were created by Paul Schneider, saying "it was a matter of developing a good Romanesque set of admirable antagonists an extension of the Roman civilization to the point of space travel."

Biology

As a branch of the Vulcan species, Romulans have pointed ears, upswept eyebrows, and copper based blood. Like Vulcans, their blood is green when oxygenated in the arteries and is copper or rust colored when deoxygenated in the veins. The Romulan heart is gray. In addition, many have a small V-shaped ridge above the bridge of their nose, uncommon to Vulcans. It is important to note that some Romulans do not possess the forehead ridges, as evidenced by Romulans seen in TOS, and as Spock was able to travel across Romulus without raising suspicions regarding his heritage. (TNG: "Unification, Part II") This may be a vestigial or atavistic characteristic from archaic generations of the Vulcan race. They generally have dark hair as well.

While Vulcans are much stronger than humans and have natural touch telepathic abilities, thousands of years of divergent speciation (or perhaps the lack of Vulcan mental discipline) seems to have stripped Romulans of these traits. From what can be seen in the various Star Trek series, Romulans are not telepathic and no stronger than normal humans.

Culture

Cuisine

Romulan Ale is a popular blue alcoholic drink which was considered illegal due to a Federation trade embargo in the late 23rd century (per Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan) through the late 24th century (per Star Trek: Nemesis). During the alliance with the Federation because of the Dominion War of 2373-2375, Romulan Ale was temporarily legalized.

Other Romulan drinks include Kali-fal, a blue drink with an aroma that should forcibly open one's sinuses before the first sip. Romulan foods include Ossoul twist, Viinerine and jumbo Romulan mollusk, an expensive delicacy.

Fashion

Romulan fashion of the late 24th century had distinctive squared shoulders. Hair is generally cut straight across the forehead close to the eyebrows, with longer locks framing the face, cut following the cheekbones; this style resembles a helmet.

In the original Star Trek, Romulan military uniforms consisted of a gray tunic with varying kinds of decorative sashes. Commanders wore red sashes, senior officers wear blue sashes, and most soldiers wear no sash at all. In subsequent series, such as Star Trek: The Next Generation, Romulan uniforms are of a different style, with varying kinds of patterns and colors. These don't seem have anything to do with the Romulan's position or rank - many fanon material suggests that such uniforms are patterned according to family or clan affiliation.

As of Star Trek: Nemesis, Romulan uniforms are more standardized.

Design

Romulans make generous use of the colors green and gray and often use materials resembling limestone for construction. The emblem of the Romulan Star Empire depicts a large bird of prey clutching the worlds of Romulus and Remus. The avian motif also appears on their Bird of Prey starships, and may have cultural significance. Those who rejected the teachings of Surak were said to be "beneath the raptor's wing".

Designer Herman Zimmerman has said regarding interior design, "the Romulans have possessed advanced technology a lot longer than the Federation, so the look was a combination of art deco and medievalism meets high-tech. Most of the designs were inspired by Italian designer Carlo Scarpa."

Regarding exterior design of the senate area, designer Syd Dutton said director "Stuart Baird wanted us to think about Albert Speer, the architect who did all the conceptual drawings for Hitler. took that national socialist idea to a ridiculous extreme where everything was huge and classical.

"The Romulans are a people who live in a marshy area. They had little houses on stilts around mudwork. The mudwork became part of this central core and that was where the old part of the city - the Forum and senate buildings - was located. As the city expanded going away from that, the buildings became bigger and more technological."

Society and government

The Romulan government is very similar to that of the Roman Republic before it became the Roman Empire. The Romulan government consists of several parts: the Romulan Senate, the main governing and legislative body in a large chamber on Romulus. The Senate is headed by the Praetor, followed by the Proconsul. The Senate does not sit on the third day of the Romulan week. The Romulan Senate also has the Continuing Committee, which is composed of senators and the chairman of the Tal Shiar and confirm the new praetor.

It has been implied that Romulans use a caste system. The Romulan contempt for Vulcans, their treatment of other sentient species, and their need for strict conformity, suggests that Romulan society is racist/specist.

The Romulan Star Empire was once ruled by an Empress: a member of the Q Continuum informed Kathryn Janeway he had considered having a child with a Romulan Empress ('The Q and the Grey'). However, it is unclear when the Romulans possessed this system of government or how it functioned in relation to the Romulan Senate.

The Romulan term for their mythological place of creation is "Vortavor".

It is generally accepted canon that Romulan females are equal to males, both having equal ability to rise through the ranks of the military. Notable females include Sela (Tasha Yar's daughter), Donatra (Star Trek: Nemesis), Toreth (TNG: "Face of the Enemy") and the Romulan Commander in the TOS episode "The Enteprise Incident", who is never referred to by name.

Leadership

Praetors

• Neral
• Hiren
• Shinzon (Human clone, Reman-raised)
• Tal'aura

Senators

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