In primitive humma society each humma of property ruled an estate. These estates eventually became the property of the lineage and were ruled by an elected leader. The head of the lineage, called the Hum, was chosen by tradition from among the neuters over the age of 170. Most ruled till death but a lineage that suffered a set back might elect a new leader from available candidates. The response of a deposed leader ran the gamut from suicide to political machinations to aggressive attacks on the causes of his downfall, within or without the lineage.

Houses developed when several lineages banded together or landless lineages swore fealty to a successful one. In ancient and times it was not unheard of for a house to fracture as infighting erupted within its ranks but this event has become exceedingly rare in modern times.

Houses allied in a constantly shifting web of alliances, loyalties, and feudal obligations with the leaders of preeminent houses being named High Ones, Higher Ones and eventually the equivalent of king, Highest One. Humma history prior to the First Sathar War has been described as one long brawl. While the houses eventually stabilized the web of alliances between them was always prone to fracture until the advent of the sathar. Some sociologist predict a return to civil strife should the threat of the sathar ever be removed.

Modern hummarin society is still feudal. The threat of the sathar and their intense hatred for the worms has frozen in place the kingship and feudal titles with the houses holding them at the time of the SW1. This present situation may not hold but the house holding the kingship of the star system has used the crisis of genocidal attack by the sathar to solidify its position and shore up control of the system. More and more its rivals are finding that they may never be able to challenge the royal house as it funnels tax revenue into a military organization that only bears fealty to the king, and not to any house including his own.

All humma take the fealty they owe to their superiors as a very serious matter. Some actually add the name of their lineage or house to their personal name (Glaxchild, Kuld of Arius, etc.).

The gender roles within society are vastly different but with the unifying theme of preservation of the species. Since fertile females are always in limited supply traditional hummarin society focused on protecting those that survived infancy and effectively used them as markers for keeping score. Modern practices have relaxed some but the expectation remains that a fertile humma has an obligation to perpetuate the species and few if any buck the system.

The role of the virile male has traditionally been that of warrior. Some sociologists believe that the warrior role played an important role in humma society in controlling the burgeoning male population. With the average female mating at around age 20 years and most humma spending another 150 years as a male a disproportionate portion of the population is always male. It may have been that the evolution of the warrior ethic was a societal strategy to relieve the pressure produced by the gender imbalance. It had the dual effect of focusing male energies and thinning the male population.

For the males that reached old age or the neuter stage their role transitioned to that of leader. The reduced population that reaches this gender stage become the “keepers of the tribal wisdom” as it were and oversee the care for the young, administration of their houses and lineage, and plotting the advancement of the house of lineage. The most significant achievement of a neuter is playing a role in securing a seat among the royalty for his house or lineage.