CAA: Christian Anime Alliance

The first three chapters of my WIP novel, Before the Dawn, take place in a village called Bridgewater. Can anyone help me with the type of industries/shops they would have. They are fairly primitive and their economy is based on trade.
What I have so far:

Butcher - meat
Talior - sells and mends clothing
Smith - repairs and makes farming implements, tools and other things
Shepherd - provides sheep for meat and wool
Farmer - harvests grain and other wheats
Gardener - sells fruit and vegetables
Potter - creates pottery and other clay things
Healer - the village doctor uses herbs etc
Priest - head of the church


These last two are specifically for my novel:

Infirmary - a huge concrete vault built for emergencies in war
Graves - where all scrap and metal technology go (forbidden area)

Have I missed anything out?
Thanks!

Carpenter/Cabinetmaker
Baker

These are the two I'm using in my current novel project. Have a go!

Reminds me of school many years ago... only others I can add to the list are tanners and thatchers (or was there another name for them?)

Swineherd, a man who looks after pigs.
Cobbler, a shoemaker
A playwright, his kingdom for a horse.

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

Is a tanner someone who works leather?
And a thatcher someone who thatches rooves?

What's someone who looks after chickens and cows called?
What's someone who looks after beehives called?

The Settlers series of games is all about building a primitive village with basic tradespeople. *loves Settlers IV*

The buildings you can build in the lastest game are here:
http://www.thesettlers.com/uk/buildings.php

Thanks Sam!

Usually there is some sort of wineshop right? The guy who keeps bees is called a beekeeper. Right now i am picturing a village from like disney's beauty and the beast. So in that there was a tavern. Or is ur village more primative? Sorry i cant help so much..

A tavern? I forgot that, thanks! Ah, beekeeper that's the word I was looking for.
The village is primitive. Medieval in some ways but possible close to Beauty and the Beast style (can't remember, so long ago). The basics are that they are scared of technology and herbal lore and therefore don't use herbs for cooking/medicinal purposes and only have wooden and bone tools etc, not metal.
Thanks again!

Warrior 4 Jesus wrote:Is a tanner someone who works leather?
And a thatcher someone who thatches rooves?

Yes they be!

Ah,exactly what time period do you have in mind.We could use more of a hint than simply Mediveal.Could you tell us the century such as 9th,10th,11th,etc.?
When you're setting the novel would also influence what type of shops a village would probably have.

Hehe, this is the main reason I write fantasy novels. A blacksmith could be someone who paints Smith's nails black!

Mitsuki, no particular era. It is fantasy with elements of sci-fi. But the village environment is 'late Medieval' period.

The village idiot.
The stalks.
The Barrarks for the knights (if it's a big village)
and throw in a Beserker for the heck of it!

how about an amourer for making swords etc?

Hmmm...so it could be a mix then.
Speaking of village idiot remember that line from Black Adder The Third where
he asks Baldric why he lost the election for Village Idiot and Baldric says:
"Because the other guy forgot to show up."

Fletcher (makes arrows).
Woodsman, that is, someone who goes out and gets firewood to sell in town.
Depending on the era, Tinker (sharpens scissors and knives and sell baubles from a cart).
Various itinerant musicians (bard, minstrel, etc.). Some musicians sponsored by the court could be permanent.
I think someone mentioned tanner (who cures raw hides for making leather) and of course the leather worker. Paul was a leather worker; that's how he supported himself as he traveled around the mediterranian.
Stone mason. These might also be itinerant, depending on the local building projects.
Dowser (finds water). Might not fit into a Christian scenario...
Depending on the theme, a healer women/herb gatherer/healer (aka a witch) that might be considered good or bad.

SP1

To begin with the villagers were Pagans, but then they later became the equivalent of Christians.
Thanks SP1!

Village witch or Warlock if they are originally Pagan or Priest or Priestess of whatever Gods they originally worshipped.I know some people will be upset with the concept of a Village Witch or Warlock but as you say the Villagers are originally Pagan and so having such people would fit in with the original religous context of the Village.Perhaps the Priest/Priestess also serves as a Witch or Warlock in that way he or she combines Religion with Magick.

Witch, unless they are cast in a bad light.

"Warlock" is a term that means "oath-breaker" - no self-respecting practitioner, past or present, wanted to be considered a warlock. Warlocks are those who manipulate people for their own purposes, cause rampant harm, turn on their kind and their environment and betray others for personal gain. I guess the best example most people would get from today's references would be Saruman from Lord of the Rings - he is a White Wizard by training (white having a particular relevance in that story; it does not in all cultures or religions) and continued to be referred to as a wizard, he is what any who wanted to speak ill of him would call a "warlock".

"Witch" can be used with either a male or female character, though it's more common to hear "Wizard" used for males in Western culture.

Depending on what sort of Pagan culture they developed out of (animist, polytheistic, etc), there would be various levels of understanding of magic and religion. In general, the average peoples of Pagan cultures knew the local deities and common spirits. Many had traditional rituals or remedies to protect themselves and their belongings.

Depending on the culture, you could also find a hierarchy within the religion - the top level would usually culminate in a High Priest or High Priestess or both. Some cultures, like the Egyptians, not only held the religious hierarchy but held their country's ruler in the highest position of both government and religion. In other cultures, there may be very few people who acted as a go-between for the people and the gods - these are often referred to in various writings as "medicine men", "witch doctors" and "shamans", though those were not the terms they usually applied to themselves.

Also, the villages of such people were rife with the seedier aspects of life too, so there was usually SOMEONE to keep the peace - the equivalent of today's "police officers". The person or persons in this role varied greatly from country to country and even village to village, and was usually influenced by what type of government was present and the specific security needs of the village.

Depending on the villiage, you would probably find a chandler, someone who sells various dry goods. Think of a chandler like a general store manager.

The slave trader.Highly profitable buisness.

I'm serious.Sometimes when peasants couldn't feed their families properly they would sell their children.

;_; thats sad..

I know it's true, but I don't want my story to have a village slave trader. Still, thanks for the advice.

Yeah, looks like you've got a lot already... hmm who else...

A potter? (ceramics)
Blacksmith (works with iron) =toolmaker
Whitesmith (works with gold, silver) =jewler
Taylor/Fuller (sewing and laundry)
spinner/weaver (fabric and yarn maker)
Stone mason (bricks, stones etc)
Glass maker ( i dunno how they made it, but they did!)
Artisans
Clerics (depending on how medieval)
parchment/paper makers
wood choppers (sells firewood to blacksmiths, farmers)
As for cow keepers... umm, well there are milkmaids and cowherds.
And possibly merchants selling import good like silks and perfume, or entertainers depending on the size of the village.

Warrior 4 Jesus wrote:The first three chapters of my WIP novel, Before the Dawn, take place in a village called Bridgewater. Can anyone help me with the type of industries/shops they would have. They are fairly primitive and their economy is based on trade.
What I have so far:

Butcher - meat
Talior - sells and mends clothing
Smith - repairs and makes farming implements, tools and other things
Shepherd - provides sheep for meat and wool
Farmer - harvests grain and other wheats
Gardener - sells fruit and vegetables
Potter - creates pottery and other clay things
Healer - the village doctor uses herbs etc
Priest - head of the church

It really depends on the kind of village, the political/economic structures, as well as the time period and geography. A basic medievel village would really only be able to support trades that are immediately necessary (e.g. farmer, cooper). Many other trades would be found in larger towns or villages, particularly if they involve any kind of processing (e.g. tanners, weavers), where a single village might not produce enough business. Specialized trades (like stonemason) would tend to be fairly rare and found either as itinerants working on specific projects or in villages where quarrying would be a major part of the local economy.

Ultimately, a lot is going to depend on the level of historicity you want. In reality, life was pretty awful for most people, and most people would have had little or no access to education, professional healing, or even a decent joint of meat. Of course, a large part of this was a result of feudalism. If instead, your political system is meant to be non-feudal, and where many farmers actually own their own land, life might be a little gentler. Even so, life at the village level will still tend to be one of ignorance and squalour.

What type of politics do you want your village run by?
Is it going to be socialistic(that make USSRGirl happy)or have some sort of hiearchy,or will it be run by the Lord of the Manor,or will it be more democratic?

Almost everything that I can think of has already been said, but a couple of things that haven't been mentioned or I didn't catch:

Fishmonger - fish/seafood salesman, if your village is near water
Candlemaker - self explanitory
Midwife - woman who helps with births and does some minor doctoring

Matchmaker =)