9 Fictional Languages Spoken In Star Wars

It's May, and we all know what that means: Star Wars Month! With "May the 4th" celebrations happening worldwide, fans everywhere are rewatching their favorite films and series from the galaxy far, far away.

In this post, we're exploring 9 fascinating fictional languages spoken in the Star Wars universe, from Wookiee roars to Huttese insults. And here's the best part - while you can't actually learn to speak Shyriiwook, you CAN use Lingopie's Extension with Disney+ to learn real languages like Spanish, French, or Japanese while enjoying all your favorite Star Wars content!

Are Star Wars Languages Based On Real Languages?

Most Star Wars languages weren't built from scratch with complete grammatical systems but were created primarily as sound designs based on actual languages. Sound designer Ben Burtt developed a clever approach: he recorded speakers of uncommon but real Earth languages, then manipulated those recordings to create alien-sounding dialogue. Here are some examples:

• Huttese - Based on Quechua (indigenous Andean language)
• Ewokese - Mix of Tibetan, Kalmyk, and Lakota Sioux
• Jawaese - Sped-up recordings of Zulu
• Tusken Raider language - Includes elements of Tunisian Arabic

Popular Languages In The Star Wars Universe

Galactic Basic

Galactic Basic Standard is the main language spoken throughout the Star Wars galaxy, serving as the universal tongue for trade, politics, and everyday communication. In the films, we hear it as English (or whatever language you're watching in), while its written form uses the Aurebesh alphabet visible on screens and signs throughout the movies.

Shyriiwook

Shyriiwook is the primary language of Wookiees, consisting of growls, roars, and howls that sound simple to casual viewers but contain complex meanings. While many species like Han Solo can understand it, most non-Wookiees physically can't speak it due to different vocal anatomy. The language reflects Wookiee culture with over 150 different words for various types of wood.

Ben Burtt created Chewbacca's dialogue using recordings of bears, walruses, camels, and badgers mixed together in different ratios to create various roars. This approach gives Shyriiwook an authentic animal quality while maintaining consistent patterns that suggest real language.

• "Wyaaaaaa. Ruh ruh" - "Hello. How are you?"
• "Ruh gwyaaaag" - "I am a friend"
• "Uma" - "Yes"

Huttese

Huttese is one of the most widely spoken non-Basic languages in Star Wars, serving as a common trade language particularly in the Outer Rim territories. It's directly based on Quechua, an indigenous language from the Andes mountains in South America, giving it the distinctive rhythmic quality heard in scenes with Jabba the Hutt, Greedo, Watto, and Sebulba.

Sound designer Ben Burtt worked with linguist Larry Ward to analyze Quechua and create "fake Quechua" words and phrases that would sound authentic yet alien. This real-world language connection makes Huttese one of the most realistic-sounding fictional languages in the franchise.

• "Chuba!" - "Hey you!"
• "Achuta" - "Hello"
• "E chu ta!" - A profanity so offensive that its translation isn't printable

Mando’a

Mando'a is the language of the Mandalorians, the warrior culture known for their distinctive armor worn by characters like Boba Fett and Din Djarin. Unlike many Star Wars languages that are primarily sound effects, Mando'a is one of the most thoroughly developed languages in the franchise, with consistent grammar, vocabulary, and even poetry created by author Karen Traviss for Star Wars novels.

Basically, Mando'a is an agglutinative language where words combine to form new meanings. It's somewhat similar to Finnish or Turkish on Earth.

• "Su cuy'gar!" - "Hello!" (literally: "So you're still alive")
• "Vor entye" - "Thank you" (literally: "I accept a debt")
• "Ori'buyce, kih'kovid" - "All helmet, no head" (insult for someone with inflated authority)

Droidspeak

Droidspeak (or Binary) is the electronic language used primarily by astromech droids like R2-D2 and BB-8. Despite consisting of beeps, whistles and electronic tones, it's a complex communication system that can convey detailed technical information as well as emotions. There's no direct Earth language equivalent for Droidspeak, though it somewhat resembles Morse code in its pattern-based communication.

Some humans in the Star Wars universe, including Anakin Skywalker, Luke Skywalker, Poe Dameron, and Rey, develop the ability to understand it without translation.

• Cheerful ascending whistles - Excitement or agreement
• Low, descending tones - Concern or disagreement
• Rapid beeping patterns - Urgency or alarm

Jawaese

Jawaese is the fast-paced, high-pitched language of Tatooine's hooded scavengers, the Jawas. What makes it truly alien is that it's not just verbal—it actually incorporates scent as part of communication, with Jawas releasing specific pheromones that add context to their spoken words, making it virtually impossible for non-Jawas to fully master the language.

To create Jawaese for the films, Ben Burtt recorded speakers of Zulu (a South African language) and then digitally sped up the recordings to achieve the Jawas' distinctive cadence.

• "Utinni!" - An exclamation of excitement or surprise
• "M'um m'aloo" - "Hello"
• "Ibana" - "Yes"

Bocce

Bocce is an artificial trade language created specifically to facilitate communication between different species throughout the galaxy. Created by the Baobab Merchant Fleet, it combines elements from multiple languages to form a practical lingua franca especially useful for spacers, traders, and support personnel. It also has no direct Earth parallel but functions similarly to constructed languages like Esperanto.

• "Jettoz!" - "Hello!"
• "Keezx" - "Yes"
• "Zanki" - "Thank you"

Twi’leki

Twi'leki (also called Ryl) is the unique native language of the Twi'leks that combines verbal sounds with subtle movements of their head-tails, or lekku. This dual-channel communication creates a language that's as much visual as it is auditory, making it one of the most alien ways of communicating in the Star Wars universe.

While there's no direct Earth language that combines speech with body parts in quite this way, the concept somewhat resembles sign languages or body language supplements in some Asian cultures.

• Raising the tip of the right lekku - "Hello!"
• Dipping the tip of the left lekku - "Goodbye!"
• Crossing both lekku tips twice - "I love you"

Ewokese

Ewokese is the language spoken by the Ewoks, the small furry inhabitants of the Forest Moon of Endor. It sounds musical and rhythmic, with lots of repeated syllables and short, expressive phrases that reflect their tribal culture. Ben Burtt developed Ewokese based on a mix of Tibetan, Kalmyk (a Mongolian language), and Lakota Sioux, recording elderly speakers of these languages and using those recordings as the foundation.

• "Goopa!" - "Hello!"
• "Luu" - "Beautiful"
• "Chu" - The number one

What Is Aurebesh?

Aurebesh is the writing system used throughout the Star Wars galaxy to represent Galactic Basic. While not a different language itself (it's still writing English/Basic), this alternative alphabet consists of 34 characters—one for each letter of the English alphabet plus a few special combinations, adding incredible depth to the visual worldbuilding of Star Wars.

The name "Aurebesh" combines the names of the first two letters, "Aurek" and "Besh," just as our word "alphabet" comes from the Greek letters "alpha" and "beta."

Places you'll spot Aurebesh:

• Computer displays in starship cockpits
• Building signage on various planets
• Military uniform insignia
• Personal devices like datapads

Learn a Language with Lingopie

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Lingopie's innovative approach lets you learn languages naturally through movies and TV shows—including Star Wars content on Disney+. With interactive subtitles, vocabulary tracking, and personalized learning features, you'll pick up Spanish, French, Japanese, or other Earth languages through immersive entertainment, not boring textbooks.

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