SimNation

SimNation, also known as the United States of SimNation (USN), Simerica or in other alternative names, Simland is the fictional country in which all Sims games take place. Citizens of SimNation are known as "Sims." The country's official animal is the llama, and the official language is Simlish (although English can be seen on some signs, posters etc.). The coat of arms is very similar to the United States of America, using the eagle as the symbol. Its official currency is the Simoleon (§), although in some more isolated rural areas MagiCoins are also used. One may assume that SimNation has a very strong economy, considering how items are priced in Simoleons in The Sims, The Sims 2, The Sims 3, and The Sims 4. There are notable things, such as garden gnomes and plastic lawn flamingos, which are or have been stereotypical aspects of American suburban culture. Real countries such as France, Norway, Japan, China, Egypt, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States are sometimes mentioned in object descriptions, and even visited in certain expansion packs.

According to SimCity 2000, the national population is 10,000,000 in 1900 and 150,000,000 in 2050, making the average rate of population growth 1.80537% per year. As the game progresses beyond the year 2050, it can reach up to 5 billion. Using this data, SimNation's population is estimated to be 24.66 million in 1950 and 60.82 million in 2000.

History
The oldest and earliest known Sims were SimNatives. They inhabited the islands that are now Vacation Island, Twikkii Island, and the islands featured in various versions of The Sims 2: Castaway. They are implied to still be around, though perhaps in a distant and unseen area; the tribespeople encountered in Castaway are presumably SimNatives.

The opening cinematic of The Sims Medieval shows a young monarch of the medieval period (c.450-1450AD in real-world history) setting sail to found a new nation on an unfamiliar continent that is already home to a number of small, independent kingdoms. This can be interpreted as the creation of the country that would eventually annex its neighbors and become modern-day SimNation, although in gameplay itself this is left up to the imagination of the player. The geography of the medieval kingdom does, however, share some similarities with that shown in installments set in the present day, perhaps adding some credence to the theory that they take place in the same location, albeit several centuries apart.

Years before the start of The Sims 3, Admiral Landgraab sailed to the area that is now Vacation Island. Unfortunately, the natives were disgruntled by his presence, and the poor young admiral's life ends there. However, it seems that his body was later recovered, and he was laid to rest in a tomb in Champs Les Sims.

The connection between the version of SimNation in The Sims 4 is not known, as The Sims 4 takes place in an alternate universe compared to the other games in the series.

Geography and climate
The exact location and extent of SimNation is unknown. However, in many Sims games, there are mountains, swamps, deserts, and grassy plains, much like the environment in various parts of the United States. Hence, some players would call it Simerica. However, SimNation's official animal is the llama, which is native to the mountains of South America. It is still possible that llamas do not actually live in SimNation, but are used only as a symbol. Despite this, they do appear in SimCity 4, so it is still unknown which is right.

SimNation could be an independent part of North America, possibly around real-life Nevada or California. It is most likely that SimNation is located on Earth, but on an alternate universe of ours. When watching the weather channel in The Sims 2 with Seasons installed, the weather map will show a landmass shaped vaguely like India with the eastern coast continuing and not much of the west coast seen. India also has the features of SimNation geography, for example, mountains and deserts.

Some people speculate that SimNation and the world Sims inhabit are set in an entirely different universe, because in The Sims 4 arrival trailer, Sims are seen to have come from space to the real-world Earth.

Cities
(SimCity 2013 does not allow a town hall to be upgraded to a city hall, until the population has reached 2000, possibly defining a difference between the two)


 * SimCity
 * Urbzville
 * Miniopolis
 * Simtropolis
 * Bridgeport
 * Mount Fuji
 * Calvin's Creek
 * Interhogan
 * East Jerome
 * Fancy Fields


 * Test Center
 * Blazing Falls
 * Alphaville
 * Dan's Grove
 * Jolly Pines
 * Dragon's Cove
 * Betaville
 * Starlight Shores
 * San Myshuno
 * Emerville
 * East Bay
 * Finnburgh

Towns and suburbs

 * Old Country It was first mentioned in Mortimer Goth's and Gunther Goth's bios in The Sims and The Sims: Unleashed, respectively. It is explained that Gunther, Cornelia, and Mortimer moved from "the old country" when Gunther founded what would become Pleasantview. Some people believe that Riverview is the Old Country; the Riverview cemetery is named "Old Town Cemetery". "Old Town" is also referenced in Windenburg.


 * Neighborhood 1
 * Neighborhood 2
 * Old Town
 * Magic Town
 * Studio Town
 * Downtown (The Sims: Hot Date)
 * Pleasantview
 * Strangetown
 * Veronaville
 * Downtown (The Sims 2)
 * Bluewater Village
 * Riverblossom Hills
 * Desiderata Valley
 * Belladonna Cove
 * Four Corners
 * Bitville
 * Garden Heights
 * Mesa Flats
 * Arbor Falls


 * Sunset Valley
 * Twinbrook
 * Appaloosa Plains
 * Moonlight Falls
 * Riverview
 * Barnacle Bay
 * Hidden Springs
 * Lucky Palms
 * Monte Vista
 * Aurora Skies
 * Midnight Hollow
 * Roaring Heights
 * Willow Creek
 * Oasis Springs
 * Newcrest
 * Magnolia Promenade
 * SimValley
 * Willville


 * Melbourne
 * Whiskerton
 * Barkersville
 * Moonlight Bay
 * Vista Beach
 * Beacon Bay
 * Sugar Maple Coast
 * Port Abrel
 * Littlehaven
 * Alpinloch
 * Arbordale
 * Aridia
 * Briney Fjord
 * Crystal Springs
 * Driftwood
 * Isla Segundo
 * Oasis Valley
 * Sedona
 * Viper Canyon

Universities

 * Sim State University
 * La Fiesta Tech
 * Académie Le Tour
 * Sims University

Vacation spots
The following destinations may or may not be a part of SimNation:
 * Vacation Island
 * Three Lakes
 * Twikkii Island
 * Takemizu Village
 * Moon Islands
 * Crescent Island
 * The Simaican Isles (mentioned in Life Stories and Pet Stories)
 * Granite Falls

The following vacation spots are specified as being separate from SimNation:
 * Champs Les Sims, France
 * Shang Simla, China
 * Al Simhara, Egypt

Different planets
These locations are specified as existing on other planets, but are still accessible to some residents of SimNation, or otherwise affect their lives:
 * Lunar Lakes
 * Sixam

Other
The following locations may or may not be a part of SimNation:


 * The Simalayans
 * The Simazonian Forest
 * The Great Simsian Reef
 * The Simaharian Desert
 * Ying-Yang Island
 * Felicity Island
 * Wanmami Island
 * Shipwreck Island
 * Airplane Island
 * Volcano Island
 * Crystal Island
 * The Simuyan Sea
 * Simomon River
 * Simislaus Creek
 * Sunlit Tides
 * Simasia
 * Las Simlish
 * Isla Paradiso
 * Dragon Valley
 * Forgotten Hollow
 * Oasis Landing
 * Windenburg
 * Windemere


 * Medieval Kingdom and surrounding territories
 * Duality (A hidden neighborhood devoted to Witchcraft, which may be a hidden area of SimNation or on another world entirely)
 * Castrova (A city mentioned in The Sims 3 newspaper, that was set on fire by a crate of unattended flame fruit)
 * Produsha (A country mentioned in The Sims 3 newspaper, it is said to have a corrupt Prime Minister)
 * Summerville (Mentioned in Alexandra O'Mackey's bio)
 * Simisouri (Mentioned in Wolfe family's bio)
 * Toadville (Mentioned in a water lily object description from Vacation)
 * RedCity (Mentioned in Military chance cards in The Sims 2)
 * Sheng Hai (Mentioned in the title and description of the Sheng Hai Training Dummy object from World Adventures)
 * Simulon V (Rabbit hole)

Life in SimNation
While the vast majority of the citizens of SimNation are Sims, there are many other life states, most of which are derived from Sims themselves. Many of these, such as werewolves, fairies, vampires, witches, and mummies are the result of Sims undergoing some sort of transformation. PlantSims are unusual in that a new member of the species can be produced when a Sim is transformed, or when a PlantSim reproduces by sporulation. Some, such as ghosts and zombies, are related to death; ghosts being the spectral remains of dead Sims, and zombies being incompletely resurrected Sims. Servos, the earlier SimBots, and Plumbots, being synthetic Sims, are something of a special case.

Others, such as aliens, genies, Bigfoot, the Grim Reaper, and possibly the original tribe of PlantSims, are not transformed from Sims, and are not normally part of the society of SimNation. However, aliens can enter, and have entered, the Sim gene pool through pollination, and (very) occasionally "go native" and choose to live among Simkind. Also, members of the Bigfoot clan who have befriended Sims have been known to leave their native Three Lakes region and live among Sims.

It is unknown whether these species exist in numbers in the whole world of The Sims universe or only in SimNation, however, it is safe to assume they are a minority.

There are also many animal species. Some are pests, such as cockroaches and flies; others are wild, such as bears, butterflies and beetles, penguins, skunks and fish; others are domesticated, including aquarium fish, iguanas, turtles, several types of birds, womrats, hamsters, guinea pigs, dogs, cats, and horses. The eagle is the possible national bird of SimNation, as seen on their possible coat of arms. Llamas are implied to be present somewhere in the nation, although they have yet to be seen in gameplay.

Religion
Not much is known about religion in SimNation since it is a secular nation. There appears to be no official state religion, and there seems to be an absence of organized religion in The Sims, The Sims 2 and The Sims 3. However, churches were present in the original SimCity and in SimCity 2000, and SimCity 4 includes the option to build Houses of Worship and Cemeteries in the city. Religion was probably deliberately left open-ended for the player to decide how to envision religious practice in The Sims.

Sims do appear to believe in an afterlife and the supernatural, but not in any religious way. The Grim Reaper appears in The Sims and its sequels and deceased Sims appear as ghosts. Also, various occult-related items, activities, and, in the case of The Sims: Makin' Magic an entire sub-neighborhood related to the occult have appeared throughout the series. They also seem to be somewhat aware of the player as they sometimes wave to get the players attention when something's wrong, as if breaking the fourth wall.

In The Sims 2: University, students majoring in Philosophy will take a class entitled "Who Controls the Pie Menu and Why?", implying that some Sims do take part in some sort of philosophical-religious debate; however, this is probably intended as a joke for the player, who controls the pie menu (usually presumed to be invisible to Sims, much like the PlumbBob) and is therefore in a sense "playing god".

In The Sims 2 for Nintendo DS, a god called the Prime Heifer is revealed. Ava Cadavra has the player build a shrine for the Prime Heifer's statue, but it is later destroyed by the player's sim and replaced with a statue of an Egyptian God by Horus Menhoset IX. In The Sims 2 for PlayStation Portable, the Kine Society, which was founded by Dominic Newlow and is led by Sinjin Balani, worships the same god under the name Beelzebeef.

In The Sims 2: Bon Voyage, visitors to Twikkii Island may accidentally anger an ancient island god, Jumbok IV, by desecrating the ruins of his temple. The long-dead tribe of island people in The Sims 2: Castaway apparently worshiped a llama god, as another ruined temple containing llama idols can be found on Volcano Island. However, the temples of both gods have fallen into disrepair, suggesting that they are part of an ancient system of beliefs no longer followed by either the islanders themselves or their neighbors in SimNation.

In The Sims Medieval, Sims partake in a form of religion resembling medieval Christianity. While the religion itself has no mentioned name, it consists of two named branches; the Jacoban Church, which relies on being feared, and the Peteran Church, which relies on being loved. Assuming The Sims Medieval and The Sims series take place in the same universe, it appears that neither form of religion survived to (or is mentioned in) the modern age.

Assuming the Sims universe is in the same universe as the game Spore is, the Spode Cult may be a religion followed by Sims; however, the Spode Cult may have formed later, formed by an alien race, or the game may not even take place in the same universe.

Education
Public education in childhood and teenager years is free and compulsory for all Sims. The possible department for administrating education in SimNation is the Department of Education. SimNation also provide private and boarding schools, in which the latter cost tuition fees. In The Sims 3, some rabbit holes, such as the science labs, have classes that are open to all Sims. A lot of a Sim's education, however, is done at home, through either reading skill books or practicing on their own, with activities such as painting and stargazing.

Higher education is also available in SimNation with Sim State University, La Fiesta Tech, Academie Le Tour and Sims University all making appearances. Sims University caters to young adults, adults and elders while the former three only cater towards young adults. The system of grading and Latin honors that higher education institutions use is similar to the four-year system found in the USA and Canada. The Greek system is also very similar to that seen in the USA. Unlike most schools in the real life USA, however, tuition fees and student debt are apparently non-existent, suggesting a generous level of government spending and/or private investment/donations for higher education. The universities may be government-owned, or they may be privately owned and supported by the government or religious organizations, by large endowments (like Berea College), or by other business ventures affiliated with the college (like A Beka Book at Pensacola Christian College).

Technology
SimNation is very technologically advanced compared to real-life nation-states. The technology of the country includes Servos, SimBots, and Plumbots, the remarkable, and seemingly sentient, humanoid robots. The technology development in SimNation is possibly administrated by the National Science Research Laboratory (NSRL), in the capital of SimNation, Sim City. Simnation is so advanced that Sims in the public can access these technologies, as shown in the Sims University through Buy Mode. The Science Research Station can be used to clone, and experiment on different objects. The laboratory experiments with many sorts of technology from cesium atomic clocks to nuclear energy and to research of hybrid plants and new life.

It is currently unknown if the rest of the world of The Sims universe is as advanced as SimNation. Foreign destinations like Champs Les Sims seem to be on a fairly similar level, although only small parts of these countries are seen.

Government
Job descriptions from the Politics career suggest the government of SimNation is a form of representative democracy in a form of a republic. The centre where sessions of congress are held might be the SimNation Congress, although it might not appear in any Sims series. The career in the first two games has positions with names such as "State Representative", "Congressperson", and "Senator" and the job descriptions mention judicial and executive branches of government. This suggest that SimNation is a federation of territories and states, each with its own legislature, and the structure of the federal government of SimNation is similar to that of the United States of America.

The Politics career in The Sims 3 is more ambiguous as to the precise structure of the government; however, the existence of the office of Vice President again suggests a system similar to that used in the real-life USA.

Also, the level 10 in politics career is "Leader of the free world" (which may be interpreted as a head of state, the same position as a President or Prime Minister), that means that a Sim can become head of state just by being promoted, without voting being mentioned.

Flags and Symbols
In The Sims 3, flags can often be found in front of military bases, police stations, schools, and city halls. These flags usually contain a plumbob with five green stripes on them, presumably the flag of SimNation. Flags of local worlds and municipalities may also be used. For example, a banner on the side of the Civic Center in Monte Vista contains a red background, white stripe, and a black llama. The city hall in Sunlit Tides contains a circular symbol with a red palm tree and text in Simlish.

Flags outside public places can also be found in The Sims 4. In Get to Work, there's a flag outside of the police station that contains a green circle, white outline, and a llama silhouette. In Get Together, there are three flags in the Modern District between Hare Square and Hare and Hedgehog that feature a white symbol similar to the Fleur-de-lis.

When Sims hack using a computer, a symbol that looks like a seal with a plumbob, eight stars, and some Simlish text, similar to the FBI's logo. It could be a symbol of an government intelligence agency in SimNation.

Military
The military of SimNation appears to be an all-volunteer force. It is possible that the SimNation Armed Forces is the military of SimNation, and the emblem (can be seen outside Fort Gnome Military Base) is their possible coat of arms. It is open to both male and female Sims; both are able to join the Military career track. In The Sims 2, teens and elders can also take up part-time roles. Unlike most modern military systems, there seem to be no enlistment terms, with discharges being granted effectively upon request.

No known wars have been identified in SimNation's history, although it is implied by Emperor Xizzle in The Sims 2 for Nintendo DS that Sims are at war with Aliens. This is probably why, in Strangetown, General Buzz Grunt shows pure hate towards Pollination Technician#9. A chance card in The Sims implies that SimCity is in a state of Cold War with "RedCity", but does not go into any detail. In The Sims 2: Apartment Life it is mentioned in Vivian Cho's bio that her late husband Etokas died "in the line of duty", possibly implying that he was a soldier; however, this has not been confirmed by the game's creators.

Law
A modern police force exists in SimNation, and the police forces are believed to be administrated by the local police authorities of a city or neighborhood. In The Sims series, crime does not seem to be treated harshly, with fines and short-term prison sentences being the only punishments. This contrasts with the SimCity series, where large federal and state prisons can be built. It is possible that crime is treated more harshly in the inner city areas shown in SimCity than it is in the wealthier areas shown in The Sims games, or that political attitudes to crime have changed in the time between the games.

Several activities, such as computer misuse, larceny, destruction of property, and child neglect are rife, and have few consequences. In The Sims 3, the police force aggressively monitors and tracks down minors who step off their home lot past curfew. Police will also sometimes arrest teenagers for sneaking out in The Sims 2.

SimNation also must have very high freedom of speech, as advertisements for Criminal careers can be found alongside lawful careers on the computer as well as in the newspaper.

Healthcare
While in the past, as shown in The Sims Medieval, Sims were frequently at risk of serious disease and major injury, most illnesses in modern-day SimNation are minor and non life-threatening. The most common illnesses are colds (which may be caught at work or school, or by coming into contact with an infected Sim), food poisoning (from eating spoiled food) and pregnancy symptoms such as nausea. Colds are treatable by resting at home and consuming certain soups and juices, while food poisoning and morning sickness will eventually end on their own. There is a risk of untreated colds developing into the more serious pneumonia, which can be fatal, as can the flu, which can be caught from proximity to vermin. Mummies and witches can curse other Sims with illness. Accidental injury seems to be virtually non-existent outside of occasional lab accidents, and though there are numerous ways to die prematurely (common causes include fire, drowning, electrocution or starvation), a Sim who has come close to death but survived will recover very quickly and will not require hospitalization. There is no form of emergency care to treat serious conditions, although in the Nintendo DS version of The Sims 3, starving Sims are taken to a hospital before starving to death. There seems to be no way for Sims to call an ambulance when witnessing a dying Sim, as they will do nothing or cry. Mental health problems such as nervous breakdowns are more common, and may be treated by the autonomous arrival of a Therapist, Social Bunny or Tragic Clown. The Insane trait will also cause Sims to talk to themselves, and want to do so. Other traits referencing mental illness include Neurotic and Unstable, and more closely resemble real life mental illnesses.

Sims may or may not require medical attention, such as receiving vaccinations for flu and allergies in the hospital, and they may receive medical checkup and vaccination clinics by doctors. Most diseases can simply be treated by taking a rest at home. Doctors in SimNation do not appear to need any academic qualifications, at least to get started in the career. Hospitals are seen in The Sims 3, mainly for pregnancy and plastic surgery, though medical outreach programs and emergencies from out of town do also occur.

In The Sims 3, hospitals can be owned by private individuals. Doctors can receive extra payment from drug companies and visiting a doctor costs money. In the SimCity games, healthcare appears to be entirely government-controlled, since medical staff and ambulances are on the city payroll, and funding from the government directly affects the numbers of medical staff.

Strangely, while SimNation seems to be technologically advanced in most areas, the average lifespan of a Sim in the normal life state seems to be quite short by modern standards. This is evidenced by the fact that all the characters who are teens or older in The Sims 3 (at least, those who also appear in later games in the series' chronology, and are unaffected by the time-travel storyline) are deceased by the time of The Sims 2, which supposedly takes place 50 years later. In real-life terms, this would place the average life expectancy of a SimCitizen somewhere in the mid-60s. The reasons for this disparity are unknown. Most likely it is simply a result of the creators' attempt to frame the series continuity in real time, despite the fact that Sims' life stages do not progress realistically. Alternatively, it may stem from the creators' desire not to overpopulate the pre-made neighborhoods with Sims already in the Elder stage.

Playable Sims are able to use items such as the Elixir of Life, Ambrosia, Life Fruit and the Fountain of Youth to potentially prolong their lifespans indefinitely. It is uncertain why these items are not more widely used, to the point that nobody ever dies of old age.

In The Sims series, there is no exact cause of elders dying of old age, instead stating it as "death by old age". In real life, elders would die of various conditions such as heart attacks, stroke, and cancer. This may be the reason that the generic "death by old age" is used as adding these conditions would increase the complexity of the games, though one might think of "death by natural causes" to describe elder Sims dying.

Sport
There is no "official" sport in SimNation, however there are sporting goods that can be purchased such as American footballs, basketballs, baseballs, association footballs, cheerleading uniforms, football goals, and volleyball nets. This suggests that these forms of sport are played in SimNation.

In most games of The Sims Series franchise, there is a professional sports career that Sims can join suggesting that there is a sports league in SimNation, however the exact sport is unknown. The icon of the career suggests that association football is being played. However the stadium would be too small for football to be played, as it is built similar to an arena. It is likely that the stadium could have been scaled down to fit the 64x64 maximum lot size. There is evidence that the sports league played in The Sims 3 would be baseball. One evidence is that the terminology in the job description uses baseball terms such as "Minor Leagues", "Disabled List", and "saves". Another evidence is when Sims become players they wear baseball caps and the scoring would match closely to a baseball game. There is even a baseball field in Moonlight Falls. Given the contradictory evidence, it is possible that the exact nature of the sport is left deliberately ambiguous and up to the player's imagination.

In The Sims 2: FreeTime, a new sports channel is added on TV. Two of the sports that are shown are association football and rugby, which could suggest that there are football and rugby teams in SimNation.

In addition to team sports, individual sports such as archery are featured in a number of Sims games. Additionally, games of physical skill such as pool, table tennis, and golf are played in various installments of the game, and non-competititve athetic activities such as swimming, dance, yoga, aerobics, and fitness training are shown to be popular as social, lesiure, and/or skill-building activities, often having a TV channel dedicated to them.

The Sims Medieval is the only game in the franchise to include a playable athletic sport that has an element of professional competition: Kingball. Kingball is a racket sport and is played by either two or three players, on a court laid out in the shape of a triangle, with one player standing on each point. Like pool and dancing in the main games in the franchise, kingball is a secret skill that can be improved by practice and by investing in better equipment. If a kingball court is built in the kingdom, a league will be set up and the Monarch may receive a petition to patronise or fund it. It is unknown if kingball continues to be played in modern-day SimNation, either in its original or modified forms, however it could be considered a precursor to games like tennis and volleyball that are known to be played or watched in the modern day.

Royalty
SimNation appears to be a republic, with no royal family considered as heads of state for the entire nation, and instead "the leader of the free world" are elected as the head of state. However, a few pre-made Sims seem to be of royal or noble descent, although whether they are part of a largely defunct monarchy belonging to SimNation itself or inherited their titles from ancestors in another country is never clarified. The Sims Medieval includes a Monarch as one of its ten heroes, and the Monarch is the only hero character that must be present in every game. Assuming that Medieval takes place in SimNation, this would seem to indicate that the country had a monarchy in the past.

There is a royal family in Hidden Springs named the Vanderburgs. The "Queen" holds the job title Leader of the Free World, and her children are described as "Prince" and "Princess". It is unknown if they are the royal family of the entirety of SimNation or just a part of it; or, indeed, if they are descended from the royalty of another country altogether and simply retain the titles informally. In a similar story, Cedrick and Odessa Winchester of Midnight Hollow are said to have been born into royalty but had their throne usurped; like Catarina Vanderburg, they turned to politics as an alternative way to retain their former power. Nicoletta Lombardi of Monte Vista also shares a very similar story to the Vanderburgs and Winchesters, and it's mentioned she's the last of her line.

The Manave family in The Sims Castaway Stories appear to be the equivalent of royalty among SimNatives, with Fangaloka referred to as a tribal chief and deferred to as absolute leader of his community; however, it is apparent that this status is not recognised in the rest of SimNation, or possibly even outside of Felicity Island. Princess Zaghawa Maximus is implied to be both SimNative in origin and descended from a royal line; however, her status in SimNation is likely due to her wealth and celebrity as an opera singer rather than her lineage. Similarly, Rubisel Ichtaca of Isla Paradiso is descended from ancient royalty as, presumably, are his brother Guillermo, niece Liliana and nephew Everado. Rubisel is apparently still known as "The Prince", although the title now seems to be held informally, and the rest of the family do not seem to publicize the royal connection. Rubisel's unborn illegitimate child will also be a part of this royal bloodline, though since the baby's mother is married to another man, it is possible that the connection will go unacknowledged.

The Goth family may have held a minor title at some point, as a Lady Ravendancer Goth is mentioned in item descriptions for downloads from The Sims 3 Store. However, since Gunther's biography in The Sims: Unleashed makes it apparent that the Goths are recent immigrants to SimNation (moving there just before The Sims 3 takes place), it is likely that this title probably refers to the family's status in the Old Country, if they still hold it at all.

In Isla Paradiso there is a mermaid known as the Triton King, which may indicate that mermaids have royalty of their own.