![[title] The Incompleat Known Space Concordance](/knownspace/IKSC_LogoSmall.gif)
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What/Who is this website for?This is a concordance, or encyclopedia, of the "Known Space" fictional universe created by Larry Niven. The Concordance is primarily intended for readers who have read at least a few Known Space stories; readers who either want to learn more, or who want to check specific facts.If you are a newcomer to Known Space and want to know what to read, see the
"What to Read First" section.
Who is Larry Niven?Science fiction author Larry Niven's first story, "The Coldest Place", was published in 1964. He was one of the very few "hard science fiction" authors to begin publishing in that decade, and the only one to become famous. By the early 1970s he had established himself as one of the genre's leading authors, and is still writing today. He has written or co-authored over 55 books and hundreds of short stories. Along the way he has won five Hugos, science fiction's most prestigious literary award, as well as a Nebula and others. For more information, see this biography.What is "Known Space"?Known Space is the name of Larry Niven's largest and best-developed "future history" series of science fiction stories. Its most famous entry is Ringworld, one of the very few novels to win both the Hugo and Nebula awards. The most recent additions to the series are the novels Fleet of Worlds (2007) and Juggler of Worlds (2008), both co-authored by Edward M. Lerner.Known Space started in 1964 with several unconnected stories; the first was "The Coldest Place". They were joined into a single universe in 1966 when "A Relic of the Empire" joined the background of the Beowulf Shaeffer stories ("Neutron Star", "At the Core") to the background of the chronologically earlier World of Ptavvs.
A Brief Overview of Known SpaceKnown Space is roughly divided into seven periods:The near future — A handful of stories concern exploration of planets in own solar system, which in the Known Space series is called Sol System. Dates range from "after 1975" to 2040 on our Known Space Timeline. The early interstellar period — Using slower-than-light starships, Humans have established hard-won colonies around nearby stars, mainly on marginally habitable worlds: Wunderland, Jinx, We Made It, Plateau, and Down. Sol System's main asteroid belt has been colonized by Belters, and Humans have their first alien encounters. On Earth, population pressure has forced mandatory birth control, strictly regulated by the United Nations (UN) world government. Life-extending organ transplants are supplied by the organ banks, which are mainly supplied by the bodies of executed criminals. The enormous demand for organs has vastly increased use of the death penalty, to include even minor crimes. Gil Hamilton is a member of the ARM, the UN's elite police force. He investigates various crimes relating to organleggers (black market dealers in organ transplants) and newly discovered, dangerous technologies. Dates range from 2099 to 2135 on our Known Space Timeline. The intermediate era — The organ bank problem has greatly eased, due to various medical advancements. Several technological improvements, such as advanced psychotropic drug treatments and psychistry therapy, have created a "Golden Age", a society almost completely free of violence, in Sol System. Most of these advancements have been facilitated by the hidden influence of an unseen superhuman protector, one who sees a threat far beyond anything Humans can imagine. On Human colony worlds, life is not so ideal— especially on oppressed Plateau. The Golden Age ends when Human Space is invaded by the Kzinti Empire. Dates range from 2322 to 2386 on our Known Space Timeline. |
The Man-Kzin Wars — The Human colony of Wunderland is overrun by the Kzinti. Sol System desperately fends off repeated invasion by fleets of Kzinti warships from the much larger, militaristic Kzinti Empire. Unexpected salvation finally comes in the form of hyperdrive technology, sold to Humans by the mysterious alien Outsiders. More wars with the Kzinti Empire follow over the space of a century or so, all of which are easily won by Humans. By the end of the Man-Kzin Wars, the Kzinti Empire is a pale shadow of its former self, and several former Kzinti colonies are now part of Human Space. Most of the stories covering this period are from the Man-Kzin Wars series of shared-universe collections, edited by Larry Niven but written by other writers. This Concordance covers only those stories by Larry Niven*, not including most stories in the shared-universe collections. The dates range from 2366 to 2505, overlapping the last decades of the "Intermediate era" summarized above. *We've made an exception for "Telepath's Dance" by Hal Colebatch. Larry Niven's story "Fly-By-Night" summarizes the events of that story, so it appears Niven has included it in the canon. The Beowulf Shaeffer era — Over a century after the end of the Man-Kzin Wars, it is a pleasant period of easy interstellar tourism, using hyperdrive starships. Each interstellar species in Known Space has its own independent sphere of influence, and interaction is mainly peaceful trade. These species include the technologically advanced Puppeteers, and a former Kzinti slave species, the Kdatlyno. Over half the stories from this era concern interstellar tourist (and accidental adventurer) Beowulf Shaeffer. Dates range from 2637 to circa 2685 on our Known Space Timeline. The Ringworld era — Human Space has expanded somewhat, establishing new colony worlds. A few technologies are more advanced. There is one fundamental change: The spread of the (probably mis-named) "Teela Brown gene", the ultimate in psionic power, which manipulates probability in a manner making its possessor appear incredibly "lucky". Early in the period it seems little else is different from the previous era. But in later sequels to Ringworld, it seems that the UN central government has become somewhat oppressive, with significant restrictions on personal freedom. Dates range from 2850 to 2899 on our Known Space Timeline. The Thousand Worlds — Human Space has spread to an enormous number of worlds. Protected by the widespread so-called "Teela Brown gene", Humans have entered an era of ubiquitous peace and prosperity. Such an era may be pleasant to live in, but makes for rather dull stories. Only one such has been published: "Safe at Any Speed", dated circa 3105 on our Known Space Timeline. |
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This is a work in progress. Someday I hope to remove the "In-" from "Incompleat" in this website's title, but that's not going to happen soon. So, if you're looking for a concordance entry you don't find, it's probably because I haven't gotten around to it yet.
Larry Niven has often invited his readers to "play" in his "playground", and that's my goal here. Taking a page from the Baker Street Irregulars' treatment of the Sherlock Holmes stories as historical events, part of my "play" is the conceit that the Known Space stories are not fiction, but rather chronicles of historical events taking place in an alternate universe. And it indeed is an alternate universe, unless I somehow missed some several news stories of manned landings on Mercury, Venus and even Pluto prior to 1990. So, as far as possible, the main concordance entries are written as though they are English translations of a publication by the Jinx Institute of Knowledge, their Cyclopaedia and Gazeteer of Known Space, 3105 edition. Therefore, mentions of such problems and concerns such as continuity conflicts and errors in science or fact, have been "swept under the rug", so to speak, by consigning them to separate Editorial Notes pages. Just be aware that in those Editorial Notes— to mix metaphors— you'll be looking backstage in our play, and it's rather hard to maintain the illusion when you're looking at the unpainted back side of the scenery. For dedicated fans such as myself, part of using the Known Space "playground equipment" is trying to come up with "solutions" to resolve continuity problems and errors of science/fact which have crept into the series. In this, our goal should always be to presume the canonical chronicles of Known Space are historical documents, and if we discover an apparent conflict or mistake, it is our duty to create a "fan theory" suggesting a solution. |
In this Concordance, we term such a fan theory a fanfix. We prefer that term to the rude and derisive term "fanwank". Such a fanfix properly should involve only adding circumstances and events not mentioned in the chronicle in question, or reinterpreting events, and should never actually contradict any part of the canon. In our opinion, to do so is an admission of failure. If we were only clever enough, we could find a way to resolve what merely appears to be a continuity conflict or factual/scientific error. At the very least, any contradiction of canon by a fan fix should be kept to the absolute minimum possible. As Sherlock Holmes put it in "A Scandal in Bohemia": "It is a capital mistake to theorise before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts." In fact, a fanfix has value only to the extent that it does not contradict canon.
This Concordance is a project I've wanted to undertake for decades. In fact, my first plan was to use index cards for the entries, as did Ron Ellik and Bill Evans when composing The Universes of E.E. Smith. The fact I've been thinking about this project since before the personal computer became commonplace is an indication of how long this project has been in the making... or how greatly I excel at procrastinating. Or both. In any event, if you find this website either useful or enjoyable, then I've accomplished my goal. —"Lensman", May 2007 |
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