The Ferengi Alliance
Ferenginar is home to the Ferengi people, legendary galactic traders. The culture is teeped in tradition, but, unlike the Klingons and their codes of honor, Ferengi traditions always point toward profit.
Ferengi Philosophy ... Commercial Deals ... Life After Death
Ferenginar, the homeworld of the Ferengi, is a Class-M planet
with a much thinner atmosphere than most planets in this
category.
Ferengi culture is entirely based on capitalism. Social
standings, military ranks, and political status are ditermined by
wealth and the influence it can buy. If you visit Ferenginar,
bring plenty of gold-pressed latinum. Everything else is
irrelevant.
The talles building on Ferenginar is the tower of Commerce, which
is headquarters of the FCA - the Ferengi Commerce Authority.
The Ferengi live by a strict code of honor, though its ethics
might be questionable from many other races' point of view. These
guidelines are laid out in the ferengi Rules of Acquisition. Its
words are memorised by Ferengi children, who are expected to
repeat them on command.
The Rules of Acquisition consist of the 285 guiding principles that form the basis of Ferengi business philospopy - a philosophy that has enabled the Ferengi people to become the most successful entrepreneurs in the galaxy. Although they appear simple, Ferengi business scholars have been interpreting and debating the rules for thousands of years. Every Ferengi business transaction is governed by these Rules of Acquisition, to ensure a fair and honest deal for all parties concerned. Well, most of them, anyway.
After first contact with the Federation at Delphi Ardu in
2364, the Ferengi Alliance see great economic opportunities and
quickly assimilate themselves into Federation commerce. A good
example is the Ferengi, Quark, who establishes a bar and
interstellar trading operation on Deep Space Nine, a former
Cardassian space station near the planet Bajor, and gateway to
the Bajoran Wormhole and the Gamma Quadrant. The Ferengi are not
part of the Federation, and they obviously see contact with new
races as an opportunity for profit.
Ferengi head covers, the Arabesque cloth seen on the back of some
Ferengi heads, are a military designation and are not normally
worn by civilians. Although they possess technology and weapons
on a scale with most Federation races, the Ferengi are not a
military threat as, say, the Klingons, because Ferengi leaders
more often 'buy' their commands rather than earn them through
deeds and abilities.
This is not to say that Ferengi cannot be dangerous opponents.
Most adults are proficient in the use of the Ferengi Whip, a
handheld weapon used to fire high-energy plasma discharges at a
target. They also use locator bombs, a sophisticated
anti-personnel weapon capable of seeking out a specific person,
using sensors to lock onto the target's pheromones. These bombs
detonate a fatal sorium argine explosive upon impact.
Profit in Ferengi society even reaches into death. Important
Ferengi are turned into green powder - and sold as a collector's
item on the Ferengi Futres Exchange.
Ferengi death rituals strictly prohibit autopsies. The Ferengi
believe one of two things happens to them when they die. They
hope to go to the Divine Treasury,which is made of pure latinum,
where the Blessed Executor and Celestial Auctioneers let them bib
on their new life. But if they die before turning a profit in
their business, they go to the Vault of Eternal Destitution.
Since the Ferengi are capitalists, virtually all their leaders
are in place because of their cunning and wealth. The Grand nagus
can be considered such a leader. The nagus is often identified as
the Ferengi master of commerce. He wields extreme power over
Ferengi business, controling the status of trade territories and
other commercial opportunities. The first Grand nagus was named
Gint. He commited the first Rule of Acquisition to parchment and
labeled it number 162, as a marketing ploy to increase the value
of the first 161.
The Grand nagus is protected by Hupyrian bodyguards, members of a
race of tall humanoids known for their absolute devotion to the
masters they serve.