Wookies

The Wookiees were a race of hairy bipeds. The most famous Wookiee was Chewbacca, Han Solo's friend and co-pilot.

The Wookiees' natural habitat was the dense forests of the planet Kashyyyk (though some sources do contend that they are immigrants to this planet). Kashyyyk was covered with massive Wroshyr trees, in which the Wookiees constructed their homes and cities. Reportedly, Wookiees were descended from tree-climbing mammalians.

Adult Wookiees were tall, in excess of two meters in height, and were covered with a uniform, mid-length coat of thick hair. Young Wookiees (pups) were large at birth (averaging slightly less than one meter). Wookiees possessed vicious-looking retractable claws, but a cultural code of honor prohibited using them for anything but climbing trees. Wookiees who used their claws in a fight were exiled from Kashyyyk and Wookiee society. Female Wookiees had six breasts. Female Wookiees gave birth to live-born litters, with their gestation period nearly a year long. Reportedly, Wookiees had a strong bond with the Force. The average lifespan of Wookiees was around 600 years. Although Wookiees were sometimes taken to be little more than hairy, savage beasts, Wookiees were intelligent, had a varied culture, and were starfaring.

Wookiees were often short-tempered. When Chewbacca complained about a move in a game of dejarik that R2-D2 had made during their initial trip to Alderaan, Han Solo told C-3PO that it was not a good idea to upset a Wookiee&mdash;because an upset Wookiee would tear a person's arms out of their sockets. Despite their temper, Wookiees were usually gentle and affectionate with their friends and family.

One of the most well-known Wookiee traditions was the life-debt. When a Wookiee's life was saved by someone else, even a non-Wookiee, they would frequently devote themselves to a lifetime of service to their savior and their family. Chewbacca's life-debt to Han Solo, later extended to his family and his close friends, is one of the most famous examples of a Wookiee life-debt.

The most common Wookiee language was Shyriiwook. While they were capable of understanding Basic, they were incapable of speaking it due to their unique vocal structure.

Wookiees possessed a fierce style of fighting, typically eschewing standard blasters and grenades for bladed weapons and powerful bowcasters&mdash;weapons physically weaker species could not use effectively. Despite their valiant efforts, the entire race was enslaved at at least two periods of their history. Once, they were enslaved shortly after Kashyyyk was discovered by the Czerka Corporation just before the Jedi Civil War. Later, long after the Wookiees had become full members of the Old Republic, they were enslaved by the Galactic Empire in company with Trandoshan hunters (the Alliance later released them from their bondage).

Famous Wookiees

 * See also: List of Wookiees


 * Zaalbar, hero of the Jedi Civil War
 * Chuundar, Zaalbar's brother
 * Hanharr, bounty hunter
 * Tyvokka, Jedi Master during the Stark Hyperspace War
 * Dewlanna, cook on Trader's Luck
 * Tarfful, Wookiee commander at the Battle of Kashyyyk during the Clone Wars
 * Guanta, Lachichuk, Salporin, and Merumeru, veterans of the Battle of Kashyyyk
 * Chewbacca, fought in the Battle of Kashyyyk, later Han Solo's co-pilot and member of the Rebel Alliance
 * Attichitcuk, Chewbacca's father
 * Mallatobuck, Chewbacca's wife
 * Lumpawaroo, Chewbacca's son
 * Lowbacca, Chewbacca's nephew
 * Chalmun, owner of the Mos Eisley Cantina
 * Weebacca, helped Han Solo and Chewbacca on Kashyyyk but turned traitor (featured in the Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds game)
 * Snoova, Wookiee bounty hunter featured in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds; identity also used as a disguise by Chewbacca
 * Quagga, Tatooine slave and participant in demolition contests

Behind the scenes
Wookiees were present in the Star Wars saga from George Lucas' earliest drafts. In many early versions of the story which eventually became A New Hope, a crucial battle takes place on a planet full of Wookiees. This idea resurfaced in early versions of Return of the Jedi, though Ewoks would be used instead. (Note that the name Ewok is Wookiee with the syllables reversed.) In Revenge of the Sith, the long-awaited Wookiee army finally appeared on screen.

The word Wookiee has taken on a new meaning lately in informal discussions of the law, due to an episode of the animated television series South Park. In that episode, real-life attorney Johnnie Cochran successfully wins two trials by confusing the jury with ramblings about Chewbacca that distract them from the actual issues of the case. Fans later dubbed this strategy the Chewbacca Defense, and an otherwise unexplained reference to a Wookiee in a legal discussion is likely to mean something that is being used as a red herring, as Chewbacca was used in the episode.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
 * Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds
 * Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds - Clone Campaigns