Inspired by this comic from XKCD:
Is there anything to confirm whether or not falcons exist in the Star Wars Universe? If they don't then what is the in-universe reason for the name of the Millennium Falcon?
Asked
Active
Viewed 3,068 times
20
ThePopMachine
- 59,504
- 42
- 247
- 519
Moogle
- 12,424
- 7
- 75
- 84
-
1Why did this get a DV? – Null Jan 07 '16 at 16:33
-
1Not sure we need a Millennium Falcon tag, though... – Null Jan 07 '16 at 16:33
-
2does anyone in the movies ever use the word 'millenium' to mean 1000 years? – KutuluMike Jan 07 '16 at 16:34
-
1@MikeEdenfield I assumed that millenium was just the translation from Galactic Basic to English for the concept of 1000 years (whatever they call it). – Moogle Jan 07 '16 at 16:41
-
@Null I wouldn't have created one, but as it already exists I thought I'd use it. – Moogle Jan 07 '16 at 16:42
-
5@Moogle in which case, I would also assume "Falcon" is just a translation from Galactic Basic, to English, of some random bird-type thing. No proof, though :) – KutuluMike Jan 07 '16 at 16:49
-
2Do they have the letter "X" in their alphabet to call it an X-Wing? – Geoff Jan 07 '16 at 17:42
-
1@Geoff Why does an X-Wing have this name when there is no “X” in the Aurebesh alphabet? – phantom42 Jan 07 '16 at 17:53
-
You should link to the original comic in the question. – Joe Jan 07 '16 at 18:01
-
Yes, bloody hundreds – Valorum Jan 07 '16 at 18:39
1 Answers
19
Legends:
The bat-falcon was a swift species of flying creatures. It inspired the name of the starship Millennium Falcon.
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Bat-falcon
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Millennium_Falcon_(novel)
The snow falcon was an avian native to Rhinnal.
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Snow_falcon
The spire falcon was a bird native to the planet Coruscant. It was at the top of the food chain of animals such as gully rats, grate toads, ferro-worms, and trantor pigeons.
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Spire_falcon
Regarding canon - other than the Falcon name it appears not. It seems an unnecessary question imo - one could engage in ever increasing navel gazing over the necessity of language use in the film. Do ducks exist in canon? They are referenced in Episode 1. Does a Star Wars duck look like a duck and walk like a duck or is it different from an earth duck?
The name itself inherently implies that such a creature exists in some form and that is swift and agile. This is the simplest and logical explanation
NKCampbell
- 39,978
- 13
- 149
- 203
-
3Disney have really made these things difficult. I'll leave this open for a bit to see if there's a canon answer, otherwise I'll accept this. Either way have an upvote. – Moogle Jan 07 '16 at 16:53
-
-
@Moogle If you are willing to accept a Legends answer, please use the Star Wars Legends tag so answerers will know whether Legends is acceptable or not. – Null Jan 07 '16 at 16:56
-
@Null - thanks for the clarification as well - I've never paid any attention other than to try and differentiate in the answer itself. I do think there is value in addressing what has come before (as long as it is identified as such) because Disney doesn't preclude mining from Legends material – NKCampbell Jan 07 '16 at 16:57
-
3"Trantor pigeons"? That's an amusing shout-out to the probable inspiration for Coruscant... – Mason Wheeler Jan 07 '16 at 18:17