Fid

First Appearance and Context

Within the mathic world, “fid” denotes a junior learner inside a math. The term appears both as a collective label (“the fids”) and as a style of address before a given name during instruction or examinations. In the present account, a crop of fids undergoes intense review before and around the days of Apert, and in the days that follow the bells repeatedly signal Eliger as members of the crop are called to join orders.

Roles/Actions and Affiliations

Fids learn under elder Avout, attend lessons, copy texts, and take on chores that sustain the community. They are often assigned to teams led by a mentor; for example, a senior fraa’s fids may help keep the rooftop observatory in working order and support observations. As Eliger proceeds, fids publicly choose and are bound to orders; locally named choices include the Edharian Order and the Order of the New Circle, among others.

• Seasonal labor: during autumn, fids may climb the mid‑level boughs in the page‑tree coppice to pick suitable leaves and skim them down to older avout for stacking and drying for later page‑making.
• Instruction pacing: Elder avout consider it part of their responsibility to introduce fids to the right material at the right time, sometimes by delivering a Calca—a set‑aside technical lesson—and by shifting them from rote component methods (such as Saunt Lesper’s Coordinates) toward more intuitive frameworks when they are ready (see Saunt Lesper).

Relationships

• Mentorship: Fids commonly work under a specific elder as part of a practical or research team.
• Cohorts: Fids identify strongly with a “crop,” moving through studies and responsibilities together.
• Forms of address: Elders may use “Fid” as a formal prefix to a given name during instruction and examinations.

Descriptions/Characteristics

• Usage: The singular and plural are used in everyday speech; “the fids” refers to the cohort collectively.
• Social nuance: In informal talk the label can carry a gentle reminder of junior status (“the fid is beginning to act his age”).

Current Status/Location

In the current sequence, fids of the observed crop have been steadily called during ongoing Eliger to join various orders following the close of Apert; others continue routine study and duties within the math until their own selection.