Physically, they are of medium height and sturdy build, with a height that varies between 5 and 6 feet and a weight that can even reach 100 kg. Their body is long and oval-shaped, with a convex back just above the head, which is triangular in shape, with a slightly pointed muzzle. The mouth is protractile and is equipped with four short and fleshy barbels. Their tail is forked, and the main colors are white, black, red, yellow, blue, and cream, although the various color combinations are innumerable. Like a few other Anthros, they've kept reproduction by oviparity, and females lay a pair of eggs in a water basin after fertilization occurs through sexual acts. Also, like others belonging to the Gilleds subgenus, they have developed legs and a double breathing system, thanks to a sort of primitive lung, similar to animal-lungfish. They can live out of the water for some time, even up to ten days, but they have a constant need to fully bathe the body at least once a day.

The Carp people end prehistory coincides with the beginning of the so-called Yakoi period, as for the first time, traces written on Shino are found in two historical sources, the Book of Koi and the Book of Wei. Their organization was typically that of clans, and the whole archipelago was divided into numerous fiefdoms characterized by a matriarchal society. But then, the Yamato clan gradually managed to expand into major islands, using weapons and diplomacy. The bakufu, a military government headed by shoguns, redesigned the society through the adoption of the four social castes of the shinōkōshō model: knights (shi), peasants (nō), artisans (kō), and merchants (shō). Members of each class are always required to follow precise rules of conduct, which regulate their rights on land, tax obligations, response to crimes, and political authority.

The Carp people, besides being skilled in fishing and soy crops, are also skilled in art and poetry. An important aspect of Carp people's culture is easily found in the bushido: a code of conduct and lifestyle adopted by samurai, Shino's knight caste. In it, in addition to military discipline rules, the moral ones are collected, and a peculiarity of bushido is that, although it was written for noble knights, anyone is expected to follow its strict laws.

They speak the Itthen language, common to all Anthro fish races, a guttural language accompanied by strong facial expressions, understandable even underwater where sounds are less easy to hear (perhaps a Japanese gibberish).

Religiously they are mostly devoted to Caamiran (deity of law and justice), Vael Nhor (deity of magic and memories), and Rowana (deity of family and hearth), but here and there also thrive the cult of Thialon (deity of conquest and ambition), Madra (deity of deceit and discord), Ekoari (deity of science and crafting), and Kalaukeke (deity of competition and battle).

Their Ancestral Princes were Kōhaku Masako and Himiko Kogo, who taught their race that the respect due in gestures and language to superiors in caste, as well as family members, is of primary importance for the maintenance of a firm and strong society. Not so much beauty, but rather formality and appearance, are essential: no flaws or weaknesses must ever be publicly displayed. Furthermore, they point out that the strength of the Carp people is, and always will be, in their sturdiness, which will safeguard them from any possible harm to their society.

Footnote
Typical of the Carp people is the use of a boat called Bōto yōki, a vessel with very massive features, heavy and slow in navigation, equipped with side and above sails, easy to maneuver near coasts but very bad in open sea, with a very high load capacity.