Wookiee

The Wookiees are a fictional race from the imaginary universe in which the Star Wars saga films are set, although their first appearance is in the form of a quote in the film THX 1138.

The most famous Wookiee is Chewbacca, Han Solo's sidekick. Other known Wookiees include Lowbacca, Tyvokka, Zaalbar, Chuundar, Attichitcuk, Tarfful, Mallatobuck, Lumpawarrump, Chalmun, Snoova, Yarua, and Hanharr.

Inspiration

According to an interview with creator George Lucas, the inspiration for the Wookiee was the dog from Lucas, Indiana (whose name is used in Lucas's Indiana Jones movies): "He was the prototype of the Wookiee. He always sat next to me in the car. It was big, a dog that looked like a big bear'. During the climactic chase scene in THX 1138, one of the robotic police officers, voiced by actor Terry McGovern, improvises: & #34;I think I ran over a Wookiee back there," and thus the word was born. Wookey was the last name of a friend of Terry's, Ralph Wookey, and Terry thought it would be a funny joke to include his friend's name on the THX-1138 soundtrack.

In an episode of Animal Planet's Animal Icons series, focused on creating Star Wars figures, it was revealed that Wookiees were also based on orangutans and lemurs, which are long-haired creatures that live in a warm forest climate. The net effect in terms of the appearance of the Wookiees is a marked resemblance to descriptions of the legendary Sasquatch of the Pacific Northwest.

Representation

Anatomical Features

Wookiees are large bipedal humanoids, measuring an average of 2.21 meters (7 ft 3 in), and endowed with a large amount of fur that covers their entire bodies. They have long, developed fangs and a nose resembling a dog's snout. The anatomy of their throat does not have a vocal apparatus similar to that of humans, but they have developed their own language, based on grunts and roars. The other inhabitants of the Galaxy are not capable of reproducing such sounds, but they can learn to understand them. For example, in the Star Wars saga movies, Han Solo once made the Wookiee grunt to communicate with Chewbacca but although he doesn't do the same language as they did, he understands what he says. his Wookiee partner; Yoda, who has a good relationship with the Wookiees, also understands what they say and C-3PO, as he is a protocol droid, translates several languages, one of which is the Wookiee language. Wookiees have been shown in many diverse settings, such as those on Hoth, Tatooine, and Endor, not wearing protective clothing or showing any signs of discomfort. Wookiees have a lifespan of several hundred years.

Culture and degree of civilization

Wookiees are loyal and devoted friends and are highly suspicious of strangers. The life debt is sacred to them.

Despite fearsome appearance and temperamental disposition, Wookiees are highly intelligent and highly adept at handling advanced technology. For example, Chewbacca co-pilots and performs maintenance on the Millennium Falcon, and also possesses a working knowledge of robotics, managing to randomly reassemble C-3PO after it was destroyed by Imperial stormtroopers. in The Empire Strikes Back. Wookiees learn fast; Chewbacca commandeers an Imperial AT-ST during the Battle of Endor and is shown effectively maneuvering the vehicle and operating its weapons systems. He also fought during the Clone Wars alongside Jedi Grand Master Yoda. The Wookiee cities on his homeworld of Kashyyyk, as seen in Revenge of the Sith, are built on giant forest trees. Their society contains a mixture of traditional, almost primitive-looking woodwork and decorations mixed with spaceships and power generators.

Due to their fur, Wookiees generally don't wear clothing, though for practical reasons they may wear utility belts. In keeping with the anachronistic look of their cities, a Wookiee like Chewbacca resembles a primitive humanoid bear carrying only a bandolier of energy cartridges for his blaster.

Wookiees place a high value on morality, courage, compassion, and loyalty. An ancient and sacred Wookiee tradition is that of honor family, which comprises a Wookiee's closest friends and companions. These family members pledge to lay down their lives for each other, as well as members of any honored family these individuals may have. Like the equally sacred Wookiee life debt, the Wookiees are willing to extend this tradition to members outside of their species. Chewbacca considered Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, his children, and Luke Skywalker part of his honor family.

Wookiees fought alongside Republic forces during the Clone Wars. Shortly after that conflict, they were betrayed and enslaved, as well as on certain occasions during the war by the Separatist Alliance.

Some Wookiees are Force sensitive. One such Wookiee is Lowbacca, Chewbacca's nephew, from the Young Jedi Knights series of books, although that story is no longer considered canon.

Some Wookiees are also prominent and successful bounty hunters, such as Black Krrsantan, due to their strength and ferocity.

During the events of Episode II the Wookiees and their planet were represented in the Galactic Senate by the diplomat Yarua.

Language

The most common Wookiee language is Shyriiwook. However, other dialects used by the native Kashyyyk Wookiees are Thykarann and Xaczik. Wookiees are capable of understanding the basic galactic language, but in general none can speak it due to the structure of their vocal cords. In the original Star Wars trilogy, it seems that Chewbacca can understand humans. His human companion, Han Solo, also shows knowledge of Shyriiwook, or at least can understand Chewbacca; in Solo Han is shown to have the ability to speak Shyriiwook at a rudimentary level. In the expanded universe of Star Wars , Chewbacca builds a miniature translator droid ("Em Teedee") for his nephew Lowbacca when he later begins training as a Jedi to facilitate communication with your fellow students.

Weapons

In the Star Wars films, Chewbacca carries a crossbow, the traditional weapon developed and used by the Wookiees. Archers fire bolts, which are crossbow arrows that through magnetic propulsion appear as elongated blaster arrows due to their speed. The propulsion technique gives the bolts extremely high stopping power. Chewbacca in particular is shown to be an excellent shot, killing a Stormtrooper who was trying to escape on a speeder bike in Return of the Jedi. The spring that drives the bolt is extremely difficult to cock, and humans are generally incapable of cocking a Wookiee crossbow, although Han Solo was seen to do so.

The Battle of Kashyyyk

During the Clone Wars, the Battle of Kashyyyk was fought, in which a large number of Wookiee soldiers and part of the population perished defending their land and sacred forests. Every Wookiee soldier who fought against the battle droids of the Confederacy of Independent Systems was honored and revered.

With the advent of the Empire, martial law was declared on their world and they were enslaved.