Blarina

"You're very fond of words.''" "''As are all Blarina. I once finished fifth in a homeworld soliloquy competition. It is one of our most notable traits."

- Naka Iit speaks about his species' fondness for words

The Blarina were a short sentient species native to Rina Major, who were notably fond of words and were famously accomplished liars. Many other species it found difficult to tell apart, which some Blarina used to their advantage when dealing with others. They had a broad face with a short, narrow snout, small, beady eyes and a mouth full of sharp teeth.

Around thirty years after the Battle of Endor, a Blarina named Wollivan was present in the castle of Maz Kanata shortly before its destruction by the First Order. Around the same time, the Blarina Naka Iit and Ohn Gos worked as a scavenger and a merchant respectively on the desert planet Jakku, and aided the Resistance pilot Poe Dameron in getting off the planet.

Biology and appearance
The Blarina were a short, pudgy bipedal sentient species who were not especially strong, but made up for it by being incredibly quick, rugged and resourceful. With tough skin, they were capable of surviving in both high and low temperature extremes and through decompression, and were also resistant to poison and disease. Most other sentient species had trouble telling Blarina apart based on their appearance, with members having broad faces with short, wide snouts and a small pair of eyes, with slitted pupils. Below their snout, the Blarina had a mouth with more sharp teeth than a human mouth contained, including incisors. The species' skin was scaly and could be pink in color, while their eyes could have a golden hue. They had five fingered hands with claws at the end of each digit.

Society and culture
"It’s said that the Blarina are an exceptionally hospitable people.''" "''You've heard that? That must be referring to some other Blarina. It certainly doesn’t sound like me."

- Naka Iit is surprised when pilot Poe Dameron claims to have heard that all Blarina are hospitable

Amongst the most notable traits of the highly sociable Blarina species were their fondness for words and speech, which caused some members of the species to be quick with words. They were capable of speaking Galactic Basic, and able to convey sarcasm, despair, delight and amusement through their tones when using the language. The species were also famously known for being accomplished liars, with at least one member of the species often lying about his identity in order to avoid trouble and take advantage of the problems other species had in identifying individual Blarina. They often hissed during speech and made a cackling hiss when delighted. The species were not especially known for their hospitality, although at least one member of the species was known to be particularly sympathetic to others, and another was willing to offer a stranger lost in the desert transport to civilization. Blarina would stick together when faced with species of larger size, often forming family-based guilds or mercantile associations.

Blarina in the galaxy
"I'm Naka Iit. A scavenger of sorts. I might just scavenge you."

- Naka Iit introduces himself to Poe Dameron

The Blarina Naka Iit began working as a scavenger on the planet Jakku around ten years after the Battle of Endor, and in the time made the acquaintance of Ohn Gos, another Blarina living on Jakku who worked as a merchant in Blowback Town. Twenty years into Iit's career he encounter the Resistance pilot Poe Dameron lost in the desert and agreed to take him to Blowback Town to try and arrange transport off world with Gos, who was generally more sympathetic to others. En route to the town, Iit and Dameron were attacked by the Strus clan, but the pilot managed to shake off the pursuers, earning Iit's gratitude. The Blarina agreed to interceded with Gos in thanks, and the two Blarina together managed to arrange Dameron transport off world, allowing him to return to the Resistance base on the planet D'Qar.

The hyperspace scout Wollivan was a Blarina with a large family, and due to their similar appearance, often claimed to be different members of his family to avoid trouble. Shortly after Iit and Gos helped Dameron, Wollivan was present in the castle of the pirate Maz Kanata when the smuggler Han Solo arrived looking for help getting the astromech droid BB-8 to the Resistance. After Solo's arrival, the occupants of the castle were drawn outside to witness the destruction of the Hosnian system by the First Order's Starkiller Base superweapon. The castle itself was then attacked and destroyed by the First Order. Wollivan wore a Blarina vac-suit while at the castle.

Behind the scenes
A member of the Blarina species first appeared in the film Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens, but the species' appearance was first revealed in an exclusive Vanity Fair article published seven months before the film's release in 2015. The species was not named in the article or film. but received a name in the reference book Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary, which was written by Pablo Hidalgo and released in conjunction with the film.

Appearances

 * Rogue One, Part I
 * Han Solo, Part I
 * Star Wars: Uprising
 * Aftermath: Empire's End
 * Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens
 * Star Wars: The Force Awakens novel

Non-canon appearances

 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens