From their first cry of "Utinni!" Jawas have left an indelible impression on the Star Wars franchise as one of the most memorable alien species to ever populate that galaxy far, far away. The tiny scavengers, found on the remote desert planet of Tatooine, are fascinating creatures that have more complexity than some fans give them credit for.
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Despite living on the planet that's farthest from the center of the Star Warsuniverse,they've managed to have a drink named after them ("Jawa juice" is really a beverage called “Ardees", and is made from fermented Bantha hide!), making them more famous than even they realize. Though they're most often associated with finding R2-D2 and C-3PO wandering the Jundland Wastes, what else is there to know about the pint-sized pilferers?
They Were Played By Tunisian Children In Star Wars
A New Hopewas shot in Tunisia, and according to "Skywalking: The Life And Films Of George Lucas" by David Pollock, George Lucas hired several local children to portray Jawas in the scenes involving Uncle Owen and Luke Skywalker bartering for C-3PO and R2-D2, as well as when Obi-Wan Kenobi saves Luke from the Tusken Raiders.
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Aside from the Tunisian children, there were several English people of short stature, and producer Gary Kurtz's two daughters in their cohort. This can account for the Jawas varying in height.
Their Sandcrawlers Were Real Props
The prop department forA New Hopereally made the Sandcrawlers seem like they were laboriously moving across the desert.The iconic Star Wars vehicles stood two stories tall and were ninety feet long, according to Lucas' biographer David Pollock. They were turned into burning husks for the scene involving the Imperial stormtrooper attack, before being deconstructed and shipped back to England.
Sandcrawlers can hold up to 1,500 scrapped droids and parts, which are gathered by their magnetic suction tubes. They were used by mining companies on Tatooine and once abandoned, became Jawa transports and workshops. Colin Cantwell created them to look like NASA rovers, and concept artist Ralph McQuarrie gave them their recognizable wedge shape.
They Look Terrifying Underneath Their Robes
While it's true, Jawas have never been unhooded in Star Wars movie canon,Alan Dean Foster's novelization ofA New Hopedescribes the nomads as never having"been seen outside of their protective cloaks and sandmasks, so no one knew exactly what they looked like,"and calls them "extraordinarily ugly."
In material fromStar Wars Legends,Jawas are said to have physical characteristics of humanoid rodents, given the fact that Jawa hands seem to be black and furry in the movies. Their yellow eyes are said to be the result of protective eyewear worn to isolate their sensitive vision from the ferocity of Tatooine's binary suns.
They Have Their Own Language (And Trevor Noah Understands It)
On Tatooine, it's not uncommon to hear dozens of languages spoken in the larger spaceports of Mos Espa and Mos Eisley. Jawas have their own language too, known as Jawaese, and Jawa Trade Talk for striking deals. The language is based on Zulu, which George Lucas had sped up. In an interview with "The Star Wars Show",Daily Showhost Trevor Noah explains that to someone who understands Zulu, many scenes inA New Hopecontain real phrases and deeper meaning.
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According toA New Hope'snovelization, scent factors heavily in Jawaese, making it impossible for non-Jawas to learn it — not even Threepio. In the second episode The Mandalorian,Din Djarinattempts to barter in Jawaese with a camp, but is told by one of the furry creatures that he speaks "terrible Jawa" and sounds "like a Wookiee."
Their Strong Odor Is A Means Of Communication
Apparently, a Jawa's repulsive odor reveals a great deal of information about their identity to other members of their species. It can convey a Jawa's clan lineage, health, last meal, age, mood, and even whether or not they are aroused.
Jawas often soak their robes in a special fluid to make the odor more pungent, and rarely bathe, viewing water as a resource too precious to be used in such a way. Their fetid scent is the only thing terrifying about their species, and most inhabitants of Tatooine simply find them disgusting.
Salvaging Is A Part Of Their Culture
Scavenging is such an ingrained part of Jawa culture that they spend all day searching the wastes of Tatooine in their Sandcrawlers, looking for whatever scrap they can find, from crashed starships to wandering droids. Sometimes they come across something particularly valuable, like Boba Fett's armor in Season 2 ofThe Mandalorian.
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According toStar Wars Legends, though they aren't Force-sensitive,Jawas have a sixth sense for machinery, and can often get a piece of faulty technology functioning again— just long enough to sell it to some unsuspecting moisture farmer. When they aren't bartering, they're at pod-racing events like the Boonta-Eve Classic, waiting for crashes.
Their Society Is Complex
Despite the fact that to most visitorsof Tatooine"all Jawas look the same," Jawas live according to their clan ways, with each family having territories that they live in and scavenge. Each clan is led by a male Clan-Chief, who operates the Sandcrawler and shares clan operations with a female shaman.
According to the "Essential Guide To Alien Species" fromStar Wars Legends,a female shaman either trains her successor or becomes a shaman after a particularly bad illness grants her powerful hallucinations. Shamans can cast spells, hexes, and even blessings, and balance out the more technology-obsessed aspects of their families. Because of their esteemed place in Jawa society, they remain inside their family's home, and never travel in Sandcrawlers.
They Trade Family Members At Their Annual Swap Meet
"Tales From The Mos Eisley Cantina," a beloved anthology about all the unique inhabitants of Tatooine's most famous den of iniquity, describes the annual swap meet Jawas participate in. Located in the basin of the Dune Sea, Jawa clans take their Sandcrawlers filled withtheir salvaged goods to conduct clan business and haggle wares.
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While Jawa clans sort out navigational charts and exchange equipment, they also participate in a specific trade agreement involving their family members. It's not uncommon for Jawas to exchange their sons and daughters, thereby solidifying clan ties in the bartering of "marriage merchandise."
Next to humans,Tusken Raiders and Jawas are some of the most plentiful species on Tatooine,though the Sand People and Jawas share a common ancestor, according to the novelization ofStar Wars Episode IV: A New Hopeby Alan Dean Foster.
The novel explains that Tatooine, once a tropical planet, was the home of the peaceful Kumumgah, who were bombed by the Rakata for harnessing the ability to travel through space.They were enslaved by the rival alien species, and those that survived were doomed to wander Tatooine's decimated wastelands. The Tusken Raiders remained above ground and the Jawas retreated underground.
TheyUse A Variety Of Equipment
Jawas are resourceful and cunning survivors, used to spending their days navigating the harshness of Tatooine's environment, and while they might seem skittish to outsiders, they'll defend their wares if they have to despite mostly being passive creatures.
According to"The New Essential Guide To Droids,"Jawas carry ion blasters to shoot energy at droids that try to escape their Sandcrawlers and carry restraining bolts to keep them docile. With the tools they carry on their person, they can cobble together custom droids easily, often for potential customers they come across.
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