High Galactic alphabet

"Does the weapon begin with the letter A?"

- Weequay bodyguard, speaking to his quay

The High Galactic Alphabet was a form of writing in the galaxy. While not as commonly used as Aurebesh, this alphabet was frequently used in signatures and by nobles. It was most commonly used to write in Galactic Basic Standard.

The alphabet originated as part of the High Galactic language, which was spoken by the colonists of Alsakan prior to 17,000 BBY, and originated during the war between the Galactic Republic and the Tion Cluster. The alphabet entered widespread galactic usage in approximately 17,000 BBY, during the Alsakan Conflicts.

Millennia later, the alphabet continued to see fairly widespread use. By circa 22 BBY, Republic Census figures showed that the High Galactic Alphabet was used by nearly one third of Basic speakers when writing, and by over half of upper-class Basic speakers. As a result, Aurebesh and the High Galactic Alphabet were often presented side-by-side. Nearly all Basic advertising was presented in the High Galactic Alphabet, as was the case for corporate logos that incorporated written language, such as Industrial Automaton, the Corellian Engineering Corporation, and Sienar Fleet Systems.



The High Galactic Alphabet was also used for naming many starship models (such as the T-65 X-wing starfighter) and droid models (such as the R2 series of astromech droids).

Texts written in this alphabet
Although the usage of this alphabet was less common than Aurebesh, there is indication that whole (although few) texts were written in it. Following are several examples:
 * Aro logo
 * Bureau of Ships and Services logo
 * COMPNOR logo
 * Corellian Security Force (CorSec) hovercraft
 * CSA logo
 * Declaration of a New Republic
 * Interstellar Parcel Service logo and signage
 * Jedi code
 * R-duba police hovercraft
 * Sienar Fleet Systems logo
 * Sunburst Mining logo
 * Technical Specifications: Spacecraft of the Imperium and the Rebel Alliance
 * Trade Federation logo

Droid names examples
Droid names often derived from letters in this alphabet:
 * Atedeeate
 * Artoo Deetoo
 * See Threepio
 * Emtrey
 * Emkay
 * Fourex
 * Geenine
 * Ninebeedee

Other examples

 * The Victory I-class Star Destroyer Gnisnal had corridors named Q and R.
 * C-beams

Behind the scenes
This article describes the occurrences of the Latin alphabet in the Star Wars universe; it is a form of writing in the real world and is the most common alphabet of Western nations, usually containing about twenty-six letters. Although canon has established the fictitious writing system of Aurebesh, it is somewhat unsurprising that this alphabet, especially its American English variant, make their appearance in the Star Wars universe, as the Star Wars movies and most Expanded Universe materials are of American origin.

Canonicity
"Well, actually, they do use the Roman alphabet in the Star Wars universe."

- Pablo Hidalgo

Unlike Aurebesh, neither the term "Latin alphabet" nor the existence of the Alphabet itself is ever mentioned or taken into consideration by in-universe or out-of-universe terminology or references. Roman labels in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope were edited into Aurebesh in the DVD release, indicating that George Lucas had some reasons to believe that real-world Roman letters don't belong in the Star Wars universe.

The text seen on viewscreens in The Star Wars Holiday Special is in English, rather than Aurebesh, due to the fact that the Star Wars universe had not yet "matured" and Aurebesh had yet to be invented at the time in the real world. Aurebesh was introduced five years later in Return of the Jedi.

The Latin alphabet was explicitly canonized as the "High Galactic Alphabet" in the Hyperspace-exclusive article The Written Word.

Non-canon appearances
The Happy Nerf Herder's signage was in basic, as were various other Coruscant signs around 50 BBY. Darth Vader's diary was written is this script.

Appearances

 * Hate Leads to Lollipops
 * Fett Club
 * Republic Commando: Hard Contact
 * Star Wars: Republic Commando
 * "Always count your clones before take-off"
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Droids 4: Lost in Time
 * Star Wars Droids 5: Separated
 * Lunch Break
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
 * The Far Orbit Project
 * ''The Star Wars Holiday Special
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * The Great God Quay: The Tale of Barada and the Weequays
 * The Other
 * Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor
 * X-wing Rogue Squadron 26: Family Ties, Part 1
 * Revelation
 * Revelation