forum PLEASE give me all the world-building questions you can think of

Started August 14, 2020 by @Oakiin

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I mean ANYTHING, from major historical events to how people react when they stub their toes. PLEASE.

Thank-you! Also, feel free to use this as a world-building checklist if it gets big enough?

• What low-risk naughty words do little kids whisper to each other when they think their parents aren't listening?
• What do the adults talk about (as far as current affairs) when at family gatherings etc.?
• What does their high fashion look like?
• How does the culture as a whole view the arts?
• And the sciences?
• And the working class?
• And the ruling class?
• Describe at least one example of an inside joke/unspoken social rule used exclusively by teenagers.
• What kinds of celebrities do they have? Actors? Musicians? Scholars? Adventurers/military heroes? Royalty?
• How does the culture support new parents/orphans/disabled people/the elderly/ex-cons/etc.? Do they support them at all?
• How do they celebrate birthdays, if they do? Do certain birthdays come with special significance (like turning 18 for most of us)?
• Design a house for a super rich/powerful person. Now design a house for a very poor/low-ranking person.
• How involved is the average person in agriculture/nature/animal handling as part of their job? What are the culture's views on the value of nature and/or farmers?
• What custom or rule or lifestyle choice do modern humans have that your culture would find incredibly strange or even upsetting?
• How much responsibility is given to children, and at what age? Do they have their own rights and voice in the community?
• How far are people willing to go for the sake of the culture's beauty standards? Is physical beauty very important to them?

I could go on but this is getting pretty long lol

• How does your culture show respect and whom do they show most respect to (elders? nobles? children)? Do they have special pronouns or special gestures or anything?
• What's taboo - what do they absolutely not talk about ever under any circumstances? Do they have euphemisms that circumvent the taboos?
• How would they handle conflict - would they directly confront it or would they sort of sweep it under the carpet and hope it doesn't come up again?
• How do they customarily express affection - between friends, family, and significant others?
• How is grief expressed and responded to by the community? Are there specific funeral rites?
• How important is modesty and what is considered im/modest? What social cues would show that someone is attracted to another and trying to get their attention (flirting? complicated fan signalling? dropping a handkerchief? Throwing lemons at them during festivals?)
• How is marriage arranged and by whom? what does marriage entail? Do they exchange rings or do they have other customs and rituals? (How) does their religion factor into marriage?
• What is the number 1 priority - money? time? religious expression? relationships + harmony? face?
• Are there gender roles and if so, how are they divided? Who is responsible for what and what are the tasks that absolutely cannot under any circumstances be done by someone of the "wrong" gender (if there are any)? Who is in charge of the money?
• How do people show hospitality?
• What would be worse - doing the wrong thing or being caught doing the wrong thing?
• What's more important - character or personality?
• How do people typically respond to stress and what social cues indicate that someone is stressed?
• What's the general attitude towards authority?
• How would they express generosity?
• How do they use their leisure time (if they have any)?
• What foods do they eat and what's their attitude towards it (eat to live or live to eat)? How significant is mealtime in a family or as a social event?

I might literally steal everything off here for my version of this.

holy COW you guys are thinking of the best questions!
Thanks so much!! Keep 'em coming~

• Is there a divide between the traditional arts and the modern arts in their culture? Does it spur a controversy or do the two camps get along?
• What's a fad that went in and out of fashion in less than a year, but got super popular while it lasted?
• What would be a common vacation they might take?
• National sport, if any?
• How advanced is their medicine/healthcare system? How widely available is it?
• How important is legacy to them? Do they revere their ancestors and try to make them proud, or is every new generation a clean slate?
• How educated is the average joe? What's considered a "general education" in their culture?
• What deeds are universally considered a crime or morally wrong by the whole society?
• Do the leaders protect their people or do the people protect their leaders?
• How do they treat/feel about outsiders?
• What are their thoughts on death? How do they deal with it, both on an administrative and individual level?
• Do they have prisons? What are they like? How is local law enforcement viewed by civilians?
• Are religion and the government separated, or do they work together?
• What kind of humor do they have? What are popular styles of jokes/funny stories?
• If someone wants to learn, how easy is it to access the culture's archives of knowledge? Are there public libraries/affordable classes/open lectures etc.? Or do you have to be somebody special to devote your time to studying? (eg exclusive colleges, private libraries, high prices on books/teachers etc.)
• What natural disaster/season/type of weather is normal for them? Is there some natural phenomenon they greatly fear or have never seen before?

• is there organised crime and how is it structured?
• is there law enforcement? what kind of laws does it enforce? if I visited a large city and got my belongings stolen, what could I do about it?
• if someone wanted to write a detective noir in set in this world, how would they go about it?
• how does travel work - what kind of transport is available and how far/fast does it go? what kind of people would travel around? are there any borders or passport requirements?
• how does your culture view the cultures that surround it?
• does this culture have any apocalyptic fears/predictions/prophecies? do they believe that the world will end and if so, how?
• covid breaks out in this world. who responds, how and how much?
• where do people get news? is it accurate? is there some kind of media system? how are people able to verify information?
• how would someone find a job?
• how does public sanitation work? (sewage, public bathing houses, running water, who's responsible for it?)
• what kind of architectural styles exist and which are the most common?
• what qualifies someone for leadership and how does one come into a position of leadership?
• what makes up a common household - is it limited to a nuclear family unit or does it involve extended family, servants, family friends, tutors, etc.?
• how would you insult someone without using words?

• how would you insult someone without using words

I actually know this one xD You wave at them, like how we say hello. The, uh…polite translation basically means "This is how much you talk." May not sound like much but that's kinda like someone saying frick you instead of the actual, the real translation of that is a LOT worse and I shan't share