User blog comment:Kidtragic/Elder Scrolls Races and Cultures Compared to Real Life./@comment-2600:1700:9C90:B510:F000:2EDA:FEE3:B53D-20180102171646

Ok, here's the perspective of a long time TES fan and humble historian. I may exclude some things (like descriptions of certain cultures both in game and real world) in order to keep my points concise.

Nords: I thinks it's obvious that the Nords are based off of Nordic/ Norse culture. This is heavily reflected by their names, language, culture, political system, and landscape. I would also argue that the southern parts of Skyrim (like Falkreath and the Rift) are influenced by Germanic culture as well as Nordic. As for the westernmost parts of Skyrim (the Reach), that almost directly reflects the real world relations between the Nordic and Celtic people.

Bretons: The Bretons certainly reflect Celtic, Anglo Saxon, Anglo Norman, Frankish, and even Roman culture. Their names and architecture seem really french. Their political system is very Anglo Saxon. Also, by at least the time of ESO, they carry a sort of civilized ornateness that almost reflects a 15th century England. Let's not forget that the name Breton is a clear reference to the Britons. And speaking of celts, the Reachmen are straight up Celtic. Like 100%. Basically, High Rock is the British Isles.

Redguards: Redguards primarily reflect North African (such as the Moorish and Carthaginian cultures) and even Middle Eastern cultures. There's also probably some Persian influence (evident in the armament of the Yokudan people). Also, there's some Sub-Saharan and Australian Aboriginal influence evident in their original (non Nine Divine) religious pantheon.

Bosmer: I would say they are most reflective of Native American and Congo African tribes. As a matter of fact, the Bosmer really do embody tribalism as a whole, though they are most reflective of the previously mentioned tribes. I would actually go so far as to say that these jungle dwelling pygmy elves resemble the indigenous people of the congo a tad more than the American natives.

Khajiit: Ok this one is a little tough. The Khajiit are undoubtedly partly based on the Romani/ Gypsies but, their architecture is incredibly south east Asian, specifically Indonesian. I would say that there's some distinctly Indian influence as well. There is even a tiny bit of Egyptian influence (but I mean you can't really have an anthropomorphic cat race without the culture that gave us anthropomorphic cats). All in all though, these Khats are Gypsies.

Imperial: Roman primarliy. Much like the Romans, the Cyrodilic people were very syncretic and adopted, as well as influenced, surrounding cultures. There also seems to be some 17th century imperialistic ideals present in the form of the East Empire Company. This of course is a direct reference to the the British (and Dutch) East India Company. Despite this more modern influence, Imperials are certainly first and foremost Roman.

Argonian: Mesoamerican/ South American/ Amazonian Specifically Aztec. One could also say that their names are reflective of Native American names, in which the Anglicized (in this case, Cyrodilic) translation of the name is a hyphenated phrase. For example, Sees-All-Colors.

Altmer: A very interesting Fusion of Macedonian, Mesopotamian, Athenian, Mycenaean, and 15th century European.

Dunmer: Another interesting fusion of Mesopotamian and Etruscan, as well as Beduin and Australian Aboriginal (evident in the ashlanders).

Orcs: Mongolian, Hungarian, and a bit of Siberian. There's also some Norse influence evident in their belacose culture.

Dwemmer: Straight up Sumerian as well as Babylonian and Assyrian. There's also definitely a heavy Athenian influence. I would say that their kinda like Greece and Mesopotamia on crack.