Ewok/Legends

Ewoks were sentient furred bipeds native to the forest moon of Endor. They helped the Rebel Alliance defeat the forces of the Galactic Empire in the Battle of Endor.

Overview
Ewoks were curious individuals that stood about one meter tall; they were omnivorous and used spears, slings, and knives as weapons; they also used hang gliders, battle wagons, and bordoks as vehicles. Ewoks had large, bright eyes, small black noses, and hands that possessed two fingers and an opposable thumb.

Although extremely skilled in forest survival and the construction of primitive technology like gliders and catapults, the Ewoks had yet to progress past stone-level technology when discovered by the Empire. They were quick learners, however, when exposed to advanced technology with simple mechanical processes and concepts. Some Ewoks were removed from their planet and taken as pets or slaves. Others left voluntarily out of a sense of curiosity, especially after the Battle of Endor led to the establishment of New Republic trading posts on the Forest Moon.

Tree village
Most Ewoks lived high among the trees of the forest moon, in villages built between the closely spaced trees. The basic design of a tree village had a "Central Village" of thatched-roof huts on the primary limbs. These huts were high enough above the ground to be out of reach from predators. Suspended bridges connected the gaps between trees, adjoining distant huts. Knotted rope ladders allowed access up or down.

In most tree cities, the village Elders ordered the largest huts built directly on the trunk of the tree. These central buildings belonged to the chief of the tribe. The chief used the largest open areas for village gatherings, meetings, council fires, and storytelling ceremonies.

Family groups kept their own dwellings in clusters on the outlying trees. Separate huts were also built for unmarried females, elders, and visitors. A sealed building was also created higher than the rest of the tree city and was used as the communities' food storage.

Bright Tree Village, where the tribe ruled by Chief Chirpa lived, was a typical example of an Ewok tree village.

Ground village
Some Ewoks of that Bright Tree Village tribe also at one time lived in isolated huts on the forest floor. They eventually moved back into the trees, however, because the ground villages left them open to attacks by the vicious Sanyassan Marauders.

Lake village
Ewoks also built homes on shallow, placid lakes. The lake Ewoks built their villages on stilts out in the water. The surrounding water protected the Ewoks from large predators. These Ewoks got most of their food by setting wicker traps to catch fish in the lake. The older Ewoks spent their time harvesting marsh grasses and drying them in the sun. They then took these dry grasses and made them into mats, clothing, baskets, and decorative tapestries. The young Ewoks loved to splash in the water and dig in the mud for buried shellfish.

These Ewoks also built wooden sail boats and oars.

Cliff village
Some tribes of Ewoks made their homes on a rock face beside a spraying waterfall. Ewok engineers created an intricate set of waterwheels, driven by the force of the waterfall. These waterwheels drove large wooden gears that rotated grindstones, operated conveyor belts from one side of the village to the other, and ran a set of wooden elevator platforms that moved up and down the cliff.

Hunting and trapping
Ewoks ventured to the forest floor to hunt, and set traps to catch various prey. The Ewoks considered themselves great hunters. A single hunter could snare small animals but an entire Ewok hunting party could catch animals as large as a boar-wolf. The Ewoks had created effective ways to hunt these monstrous animals using spears and poison darts. The Ewoks first set up a trap with scraps of bloody meat from a previous hunt and then they would set a vine net on the forest floor. When the wolf ran towards the meat, it would get caught in the net. Then, from the underbrush, the Ewok warriors charged at the trapped wolf. One of these boar-wolves would provide enough meat to feed an Ewok village for days.

Smaller game was killed with small sling nets. When a creature stepped into a loop it set off a pressure trap. A pinned sapling would break free and fling the animal into the nearest tree. Tek swee was a trap translated into Basic as "head hitter". This trap was a common defense against the Gorax. When a Gorax attempted to raid a Ewok village, the Ewok warriors would let loose a massive log roped onto trees. The log would swing into the Gorax like a giant battering ram. Many of the various traps set for Goraxes were used against the Empire in the battle of Endor.

Another food source for the Ewoks were mattberries that they squeezed for juice. These juices were mixed with water and fermented into a bitter brew.

Religion
For the forest dwellers, the surrounding giant trees played an important cultural role. These hunter-gatherers were a deeply spiritual people. They believed themselves to be descendants of the Great Tree, a sacred tree in the forests. The Ewok religion was based on nature worship. Many religious ceremonies were arranged to please various gods of weather, trees, the hunt, engineering prowess, and fertility. There were also darker spirits that symbolized the dangers of the forest. The Ewoks held magnificent festivals of rain sun, spring flowers, and fruits. There were also "Dark Rituals" involving bloody sacrifices. The rituals were held at night under the light of burning bonfires. The shamans tossed the leaves of herbs into the fire that caused the Ewoks to have vivid dreams.

Shamans
Every village appointed its own male or female mystic or shaman. The shaman was sometimes simply the village con-artist, who made up answers about what the gods wanted and how they could be pleased. Others had genuine abilities, sometimes showing abilities similar to Force-sensitives. For the shaman's services, the village gave the shaman anything he or she may have wanted, including crystals, shells, polished skulls and other treasures the shaman found interesting. Many shamans wore large animal skulls on their heads.

Shamans were also the tribal healers, usually relying on vile-smelling herbal medicines. Many types of fungus, lichens, roots, berries, flowers, epiphytes, and bark were used, with varying medicinal effects.

Soul trees
The massive coniferous trees that filled the forest moon were called "soul trees" or "life trees" by the Ewoks. The Ewoks had a deep religious connection with these trees. For every baby Ewok born, a new seedling was planted by the village. Throughout that Ewoks life, he or she was linked to their totem tree. When the Ewok died, it was believed their spirit would go to live inside their own totem tree.

In times of crisis, the village shamans would attempt to contact the ancient spirits that lived within the oldest trees for advice and guidance. The shamans insisted that it was a private ritual. The Ewoks never questioned the sacred advice brought back by the shamans, though they had never heard these ancient voices before.

Deities
The Ewoks worshipped a massive pantheon of gods that included the following spirits:


 * Great spirit of the forest
 * Light spirit
 * Night spirit
 * Batcheela
 * Boozie
 * Brother sky
 * Ceel
 * Deej
 * Chituhr
 * Denlett
 * Ephram
 * Fashkaa
 * Flitchee
 * Galeer
 * Grael
 * Heesh
 * Hexprax
 * Ilbath
 * Jahjee
 * Kazak
 * Leeni
 * Mopiee
 * Oosa
 * Oshlin
 * Rabin
 * Ralee
 * Rillish

Tribal structure
The tribal structure of the Ewoks had a Council of Elders ruling over each village, headed by a chief. A medicine man also lived in the Ewok village, a keeper of mystical lore, and a healer to the injured. The warriors of the different tribes wore raggedy garments on the head to signify the Ewok's tribe. The warriors also wore wooden chest shields, the jawbones of tiny animals, and sharp teeth. Some decorated themselves with ornaments such as feathers, necklaces, and pendants, making their body look like a clutter of trinkets.

Prominent members of Ewok tribes carried totems to symbolize their rank. The lead warrior wore a headdress made of feathers called the "white wings of hope". The eldest son of the tribal leader's family wore a headdress called the "red wings of courage". The second son wore the "blue wings of strength".

Marriage
Unmarried male Ewoks spent much of their time living alone in the forest building their own small huts near enough to the tree city to assist the Ewoks in work. Unmarried females would leave gifts of food, clothing, or weaponry on the door-steps of unmarried males as a sign of their attraction and to tell how much the village missed them and wished they would come back as part of a family and as the female's mate.

If the male Ewok decided to take a mate, he had to build a family hut in the tree city where he and his mate could live. The construction of a new hut signaled that the male had decided to take a mate, all of the unmarried females tried to woo him. Until his home was finished, the male did not decide whom he was taking. The chosen female had the right to refuse the male or the hut he had built.

Children
Ewoks were very closely attached to their fuzzy children called woklings. An entire Ewok village fawned over newborn babies. They always gave the children much attention and they considered the care of their children a shared responsibility. Woklings had few rights and the children had to learn many rituals and legends that would serve as moral guides throughout their lives. When the Ewok came of age, he or she attended the Festival of Hoods. This festival marked the transition from wokling to Ewok.

Tribal games
The "Tribal Games" were a series of games that Ewoks from scattered tribes came to play. There was much dancing and storytelling, but there were also far more dangerous events. Tree-jumping was a very popular game among young Ewoks. The Ewok would climb to the highest lifetree and leap off the highest limb. They had to catch themselves on the lower limbs until the descended all the way to the ground. If a Ewok missed, he could be seriously injured.

Music
The Ewoks enjoyed tribal ceremonies and singing and playing music on drums of many kinds. These drums were used during celebrations, festivals, and rituals.

History
Before the Galactic Empire arrived, visitors from other star systems were rare. Despite this, the Ewoks of Bright Tree Village led by Chief Chirpa and the medicine man Logray had surprisingly extensive contact with offworlders. These Ewoks helped the shipwrecked Humans Mace and Cindel Towani rescue their parents from a Gorax. Later, a group of Sanyassan Marauders who had crashed on the Forest Moon several decades earlier attacked the Ewoks, killing all of the Towani family except for Cindel, and taking several Ewoks prisoner. A young Ewok named Wicket W. Warrick helped Cindel and another shipwrecked Human (Noa Briqualon) defeat the Sanyassans, rescue the prisoners, and find the parts needed to repair Briqalon's ship. Finally, they helped stop an Imperial scientist named Dr. Raegar, who attempted to steal the sacred Sunstone and use it to take control of the Empire.

The Ewoks also had contact with the many other sentient species on the Forest Moon, such as the Yuzzums, Gupins, and Teeks. Their cousins, the swamp-dwelling Duloks, were rivals of the Ewoks, and often made trouble for them.

Nor, it must be realised, were Ewoks totally unknown in the wider Galaxy&mdash;on some planets, the phrase "a Rodian in Ewok's clothing" was proverbial to describe a duplicitously dangerous individual. Mon Mothma used the phrase in a speech she gave on Agamar before the Battle of Yavin.

When the Empire began operations on the moon of Endor, they dismissed the primitive species as harmless. Imperial operations were situated around the area near Bright Tree Village. Princess Leia, part of a Rebel strike team, met and befriended Wicket W. Warrick, who took her back to his village as an honored guest.

Meanwhile, another group of Ewoks had captured Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, Han Solo, R2-D2, and C-3PO. When these Ewoks saw the protocol droid C-3PO, they identified him as a long-prophesized god called "The Golden One". Despite Wicket and Leia's protests, Logray would have sacrificed them as a feast in C-3PO's honor. Skywalker's use of the Force combined with C-3PO's warnings soon changed Chief Chirpa's mind, however.

That night, Threepio told the Council of Elders the adventures of the Rebel heroes. The Ewoks accepted the Rebels into their tribe, and allied themselves to their cause. The Ewoks helped in the ground battle to destroy the Imperial shield generator on the forest floor, and their primitive weapons felled the stormtroopers and the scout walkers of the Empire. This assistance paved the way for the destruction of the Death Star II and the Rebel victory at the Battle of Endor. Later that night, the Ewoks held a huge celebration that could be heard throughout the forest.

What happened to them after the days of the Empire is a subject of much debate. References are made of some kind of extinction that befell their race, but this evidence is usually dismissed as Imperial propaganda. Even if something happened to the main population, Ewoks outside the system would ensure that the race did not go extinct. Most Ewoks who travelled off-world were adventurous individuals, such as the smuggler Tarfang, but by 9 ABY, there was a significant Ewok colony on the planet Svivren, although it is not known when or how they first settled there. On Endor itself, it is known that the Alliance of Free Planets used Bright Tree Village as their headquarters for a brief period of time, and that the New Republic later set up semi-permanent outposts (such as Salfur's Trading Post) near Ewok villages. Through these seasonally staffed outposts, the Ewoks remained in intermittent contact with the outside galaxy as non-participating members of the New Republic.

Language
See Ewokese

Behind the scenes
George Lucas intended that a primitive race should overthrow the Empire in the final episode, and had originally planned to use Wookiees, but decided against it after it had been established that Chewbacca was proficient with technology. His answer was to create a new race called Ewoks, which is "Wookiee" with the syllables reversed. A little-known fact is that the Ewoks are never referred to by name in Return of the Jedi's dialogue; the name only appeared in the script directions, the novelization, and other spin-off and promotional materials.

It is believed that Ewoks are modelled after Hobbits, the short and easily overlooked people who caused the dark lord Sauron's demise in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. Lucas chose the word Endor for the moon's planet to honour this, since it is the Elvish name of Middle-earth, the setting of most of Tolkien's stories.

Fan reaction
Some fans of the Star Wars series dislike the Ewoks, believing that the scenes with them defeating an legion of the Emperor's best Stormtroopers (the 501st) stretch credibility even for a space opera, and that their cuteness was purely an attempt to introduce opportunities for merchandising rather than a serious addition to the story&mdash;criticism repeated nearly twenty years later about Jar Jar Binks in The Phantom Menace. Other viewers see the triumph of the Ewoks as a reflection of one of the repeated themes of the Star Wars saga, where spirit and a desire for freedom triumph over larger, more technologically advanced evils. These viewers thus view the Ewoks in a more positive light.

The later television appearances of the Ewok tribe from Return of the Jedi &mdash; the cartoon series Star Wars: Ewoks (1985 – 1987) and two television specials, Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure (1984) and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor (1985) &mdash; are not always considered part of Star Wars canon by fans, although Cindel Towani, a character from the TV movies, has appeared in the later novel Tyrant's Test, and Lucasfilm does consider them canon.

Fate
Some fans have argued that the Ewoks must have been driven to near-extinction due to environmental devastation resulting from the destruction of the second Death Star. This is supported by physical analysis of the films, which can be used to estimate how much debris would have fallen on Endor, and by a few ambiguous Expanded Universe references. Other fans dispute this, pointing to Expanded Universe appearances of an intact forest moon, and in some cases questioning the physical analysis. The case of the Endor Holocaust remains somewhat controversial.

Associations with the Vietnam War
Some fans note that the first screenplays for Star Wars in which an Ewok style scenario was played out originates from the mid 1970s period of George Lucas's writing and as such is informed by that period's war in South East Asia specifically Vietnam. In the Vietnam conflict the North Vietnamese defeat of American troops was credited to (amougst other elements) to a better knowledge of the warscape which the Ewoks would no doubt have possessed.

The Ewoks, like the North Vietnamese, defeat an enemy which deploys superior weapon technology against them using in asymmetric warfare using a number of guerrilla techniques (hijacking of vehicles, booby-traps, fight-and-flee). Like the North Vietnamese the Ewoks have no military base to assault nor a communications infrastructure to combat leaving the modern military techniques the Empire is seen as employing nullified.

It is not without creditability to suggest that the Empire's troops, schooled in fighting symmetric war with the Separatist droid armies and then with the Rebellion, would not possess a tactical base of knowledge in how to fight the Ewoks resulting in the disorganisation amongst the Empire's troops which is seen in the Battle of Endor.

Lucas has never commented on the link between the native defeat of the Empire on Endor's moon and the native defeat of US forces in South East Asia.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Battlefront
 * Star Wars Battlefront II
 * Farlander Papers
 * Star Wars: Ewoks (animated series)
 * Marvel Ewoks 1: The Rainbow Bridge
 * Marvel Ewoks 2: Rites of Power
 * Marvel Ewoks 3: Flight to Danger
 * Marvel Ewoks 4: Valley of Evil
 * Marvel Ewoks 5: The Terrible Machine
 * Marvel Ewoks 6: The Ice Demon
 * Marvel Ewoks 7: The Perilous Laughing Spell
 * Marvel Ewoks 8: Eye of the Kreegon
 * Marvel Ewoks 9: The Underwater Kingdom
 * Marvel Ewoks 10: The Demons of Endor
 * Marvel Ewoks 11: The Incredible Shrinking Princess
 * Marvel Ewoks 12: The Thorn Monster
 * Marvel Ewoks 13: The Black Cavern
 * Marvel Ewoks 14: King for a Day
 * Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure (The Ewoks and the Lost Children)
 * Ewoks: The Battle for Endor (The Ring, the Witch, and the Crystal: An Ewok Adventure)
 * How the Ewoks Saved the Trees: An Old Ewok Legend
 * The Adventures of Teebo: A Tale of Magic and Suspense
 * The Ewok Who Was Afraid: An Ewok Adventure
 * Three Cheers for Kneesaa!: An Ewok Adventure
 * The Ewoks Hang-Gliding Adventure
 * The Baby Ewoks’ Picnic Surprise
 * Wicket Finds a Way: An Ewok Adventure
 * Star Wars: Ewoks (comics) (#1-14)
 * Ewoks Annual  (UK only)
 * Wicket and the Dandelion Warriors: An Ewok Adventure
 * The Shadow Stone: An Ewok Adventure
 * The Red Ghost: An Ewok Adventure
 * Wicket Goes Fishing: An Ewok Adventure
 * Fuzzy as an Ewok: An Ewok Adventure
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
 * Return of the Ewok (non-canon)
 * X-wing: Rogue Leader
 * Marvel Star Wars 81: Jawas of Doom
 * Marvel Star Wars 85: The Hero
 * Marvel Star Wars 90: The Choice
 * Marvel Star Wars 92: The Dream
 * Marvel Star Wars 94: Small Wars
 * Marvel Star Wars 97: Escape
 * Marvel Star Wars 99: Touch of the Goddess
 * Marvel Star Wars 100: First Strike
 * Dark Empire
 * The Joiner King
 * The Unseen Queen
 * The Swarm War
 * Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds