Ankh-Morpork is the largest and most famous city on the Discworld. Under the rule of the Patrician, Lord Vetinari, it has become an enlightened society operating under the principle of One Man, One Vote (the Patrician being the man with the vote). In most of the books of the series, Ankh-Morpork can be seen undergoing significant modernization, such as the spread of newspapers and the growth of the media, the fast long-distance communication and the growth of law and order. At the same time, it is very much a fantasy city, and includes the Unseen University, the Discworld's premiere magic school, and an assortment of dwarfs, vampires, zombies, werewolves, trolls, and many other uncanny creatures.
Ankh-Morpork, like the real-life city of Budapest, is technically two cities separated by a river that has grown together over time; Ankh is generally considered the upper class part while Morpork is the part with more character. Ankh-Morpork has, as the most famous city on the Discworld, significant appeal as a place where anyone can make it, and has drawn people to it of every kind and creed.
Despite modernization and tolerance, Ankh-Morpork is still very much a cut-throat place and regularly gets threatened by anything from more benign foes such as dragons, to the more formidable like people motivated by greed. The travails of the city are mostly featured in the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett, but there has also been a series of point-and-click adventure games.
Log in to comment