Dathomirian

This Star Wars Legends article contains information that is affected by the Star Wars: The Clone Wars project.

A definitive Legends Clone Wars timeline was never established by Lucasfilm. The exact chronology of the events described in this article is currently unknown.

This article is about Human-Zabrak hybrid species of Dathomir.
You may be looking for the Witches of Dathomir, a culture commonly referred to as "Dathomirian".

Dathomirians, or Dathomiri, were a sentient near-Human species native to the Outer Rim world of Dathomir. The creation of the Dathomirian species was the result of hybridization between Human females and male Zabrak.

They constituted a small percentage of the Nightsister society—a sect of witches using dark magicks—but rose to preeminence under the leadership of Clan Mother Talzin, a Dathomirian herself. At some point during the Clone Wars, the Kaleesh General Grievous, leader of the Separatist Droid Army, attacked the Dathomirians, who took refuge in the Nightsister fortress. Grievous wiped out every Dathomirian of the clan, except for Asajj Ventress and Mother Talzin.

Biology and appearance[edit | edit source]

"You'll have to do better than that, my pale-skinned friend."

―Obi-Wan Kenobi, to Asajj Ventress^[src]

Dathomirian females tended to have pale gray or white skin and usually blue or silvery eyes, and tall and thin bodies. Their male counterparts more closely resembled Zabrak, muscular and powerfully-built who sported skin patterns similar to Sith tattoos and vestigial cranial horns. Females tended to exhibit a certain athleticism, while males usually possessed powerful strength. All Dathomirian specimens were Force-sensitive, though this was due to the genetic Forceful component of the female Human Nightsisters that helped breed the subspecies.

Some females among the Witches of Dathomir were Dathomiri Zabraks with the vestigial horns and characteristics of the Zabrak species.^[1]

History[edit | edit source]

Origins[edit | edit source]

Although the term "Dathomirian" was originally used in reference to the culture of Witches of Dathomir descended from the Human Jedi Allya, it eventually evolved to describe the hybrid near-Human species born from mating between Dathomir's Human female Nightsisters and a group of Zabraks from Rattatak who had arrived on Dathomir during pirate raids.^[2]

Typical of Dathomirian culture, these Zabraks "malelings" were enslaved by the Nightsisters for breeding, slave labor and other purposes, and became known as the Nightbrothers. While male Dathomirians resulting from interbreeding would retain a majority of the traits of their Zabrak ancestors, most female Dathomirians would exhibit pale skin and no vestigial horns.^[2]

Not all Dathomirians were Nightsisters. Examples included Magash Drashi, a Dathomirian Zabrak of the Singing Mountain Clan,^[1] and Kaminne Sihn, the Dathomirian leader of the Raining Leaves Clan.^[3]

The Clone Wars[edit | edit source]

On the whole, Dathomirians only represented a tiny percentage of the population of Dathomir—the planet hosted about 5,200 inhabitants, 97% of which were Humans.^[4] Most of the female Dathomirians were killed when General Grievous attacked Talzin's coven during the Clone Wars; Ventress, Mother Talzin, and Merrin were the only survivors.^[5] With the species' near-extinction, Dathomir's full-blooded Human Nightsisters returned to their former prominence with Baritha and Gethzerion reorganizing and reassuming control of the sect.^[6]

Despite the nomenclature being specifically assigned to the Human-Zabrak hybrid species that evolved on Dathomir, the terms "Dathomirian" and "Dathomiri" were also often used to describe the pure-blooded Humans who were Witches of Dathomir.

Notable Dathomirians[edit | edit source]

Two Dathomirian brothers, Savage Opress and Feral.

At least one female Dathomirian, Asajj Ventress, was commonly referred to as Rattataki—a near-human species that resembled the Dathomirians to some extent. Although Ventress was not genetically a Rattataki, she had spent a considerable part of her life on the planet, eventually coming to rule a large portion of it^[7] (it should be noted that the forebears of the Nightbrothers did arrive on Dathomir from Rattatak).^[2] The famous Sith Lord Darth Maul was believed to be a full-blooded Zabrak, though he was in fact a Dathomirian^[8] with a full-blooded Human mother.^[9]

Society and culture[edit | edit source]

The Dathomirians who were Nightsisters were a matriarchal society and a tribal people who practiced dark side magic and black voodoo. The people also worshiped the Fanged God and the Winged Goddess as their main deities. They enslaved many immigrated Zabrak from Iridonia and Rattatak, usually males, to do their bidding. Many of these species traveled by piloting a Nightsister speeder. Almost all known Dathomirians were known to use the power of the dark side of the Force, as all known members were Force-sensitive.

Dathomirians who were Dathomiri Witches wore facial tattoos that declared their adulthood.^[1]