Last week, we probed the linguistic oddities of Yoda and R2-D2. This week, we’ll look at two more characters, and consider the implications for The Force Awakens.
Jabba the Hutt
“Han ma bookie.”
(“Han, my boy.”)
Many residents of Tatooine, including the obese gangster Jabba the Hutt, speak Huttese. This language sometimes includes English cognates—foreign words that sound similar to English words with related meanings. When Jabba condescends to Han Solo calling him “ma bookie,” English-speaking audiences reading the subtitles hear the similarity to “my boy,” and the interlanguage dialog is believable. We know there are new planets in The Force Awakens. Will any of them have new languages too?
Jar Jar Binks
“Whosa are yousa?”
Jar Jar Binks and the Gungans may not have been the most popular characters among Star Wars purists, but their playful dialect of English appealed to The Phantom Menace’s younger audiences as Lucasfilm sought to reboot the franchise for a new generation. Now, in an era when toy action figures are hitting stores before The Force Awakens even enters theaters, will Disney take a page from Jar Jar’s playbook? (We hope not!)
Next Post
We know that Princess Leia will feature prominently in The Force Awakens, and the way she speaks in the new films will seriously set the tone for the new trilogy. Let us explain!
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