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Jedi: "The word 'Jedi' is said to have been adapted by George Lucas from 'jidaigeki' (Japanese for "period drama" movies about samurai), perhaps contaminated by association with the warrior's title "jed" found in the Barsoom books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, a series which Lucas considered adapting to film before his work on Star Wars."
Darth Vader: "Vader is the Dutch language word for "father"...Contrary to popular belief, the word "Darth" is neither a Dutch nor German word meaning "dark" (donker and dunkel, respectively). Also, Darth is often thought to be a combination of letters from the title 'Dark Lord of the Sith', but there is no basis in Star Wars canon for this. "Darth" may also be a portmanteau of "dark" and "death.....In 1977, the year the first Star Wars film was released, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope seemed to indicate that Darth was a name unique to Darth Vader. That is, Obi-Wan Kenobi says to Vader:
"You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."
Luke: "In Latin, the name means "light" or the "bringer of light". In Nordic languages, the word "luke" translates as "hand" when not used as a proper name...Also, Luke can sometimes be a shorten version of the name Lucas."
Padme: The syllables Pad and me together are part of the Buddhist mantra om mani padme hum.
Palpatine / Sidious: "Palpatine's name resembles Constantine's, as well as the Palatine Hill in Rome—the seat of imperial government—and to that of Catiline, who led a (failed) attempt to overthrow the Roman Republic in the 1st Century BC....Palpatine's name also resembles that of Senator Palantine, a fictional character from the 1976 film Taxi Driver....His Sith name, "Darth Sidious," with its root name "Sidious" almost certainly comes from "Insidious," a word which with its connotations of "treacherous, cunning, and seductive" aptly summarizes his career as a Republic politician, who, unsuspected, rose to the pinnacle of power and exploited it."
Yoda: "Yoda" has been supposed to be etymologically derived from some ancient language - in this case possibly from the Sanskrit yoddha ("warrior") and/or the Hebrew yodea ("one who knows"). Yoda's character is believed by some to have been inspired by the title character in the 1975 Russian-Japanese film Dersu Uzala directed by Akira Kurosawa."
Chewbacca: "In naming Chewbacca, George Lucas is said to have borrowed the russian word (Sobaka), which means dog, to name this dog-like character. "
Count Dooku: "a name obviously derived from "tyrant" but particularly more at "tyrannous." The name Dooku is said to derive from the Japanese word "doku" (?), which means poison. However, "Count Dooku" could simply be a joking reference to "Count Dracula", whom Lee has depicted in many Hammer movies."
Anakin: "Lucas took the name "Anakin" from his friend and fellow film director, Ken Annakin."
Qui-Gon: ."The character's name is likely to have originated from the terms Qigong, which is a Chinese theraputive breathing technique, and jinn, desert-spirits in Islamic mythology."
Obi-Wan Kenobi: "Obi means, a sash worn with a kimono or with the uniforms used by practitioners of certain martial arts...Ken is also perception or understanding, one's range of vision, or sight. This particular term, of Scots origin, tends to be used often in religious circles. When one speaks of a "higher ken" often it is a reference to an omniscent deity or being."
