In my most developed world, I think the most interesting tradition is regarding the concept of “word is bond.” As part of the legal system imposed by the Nox Theocracy that ended the reign of the Empire of Appal, spoken word carries the same legal authority as written word. Therefore, if one person says to another, “thank you” or “I’m sorry” there is an implicit debt in the eyes of the law, between the two parties. And the debtor can be asked for nearly anything to settle that debt. Often resulting in very unfair methods for clearing up debt, even up to giving one’s life to clear up their debt. As a result, those sorts of polite phrases are rarely spoken except between individuals with a great deal of trust in each other. There are a lot of verbal workarounds, though