Yoda Facts for Kids

This page is about the Star Wars character. For the infant of the same species, see Grogu. For other uses, see Yoda (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids Yoda
Star Wars character
Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back
First appearance	The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Created by	George Lucas
Voiced by	Frank Oz (Episodes I–III, V–IX, Star Tours, Rebels) Tom Kane (The Clone Wars film and TV series, Star Wars Forces of Destiny and various games) Other: John Lithgow (The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi radio dramas) Peter McConnell (Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back) Tony Pope (Star Wars: Rebellion) Corey Burton (Read-along storybook CDs)
Performed by	Frank Oz (lead puppeteer, Episodes I, V–VI, VIII) Other: Deep Roy (costume, uncredited, Episode V) Warwick Davis (costume, uncredited, Episode I) Additional performers: Kathryn Mullen, David Barclay, Mike Quinn, Wendy Froud, Don Austen, David Greenaway, Katherine Smee, Dave Chapman, Damian Farrell, Colin Purves
Information
Species	Unknown
Gender	Male
Occupation	Jedi Master
Affiliation	Jedi Order Galactic Republic
Title	Jedi Master (Episodes I–VI) Grand Master of the Jedi High Council (Episodes I–III) General in the Grand Army of the Republic (Episodes II–III)
Apprentices	Count Dooku Luke Skywalker Numerous others

Yoda is a famous character from the Star Wars movies. He first appeared in the 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back. Yoda is a small, green alien who is very powerful with the Force. He was a main leader of the Jedi Order until it was almost completely destroyed.

Frank Oz was the voice and also controlled the puppet for Yoda in many Star Wars films. These include The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, the prequel trilogy, and the sequel trilogy. For other Star Wars shows and games, Tom Kane has often voiced Yoda. Yoda is well-known in pop culture because of his unique way of speaking and his role as a wise teacher.

In the original Star Wars movies, Yoda is shown as the teacher of Obi-Wan Kenobi. He lives alone on the swamp planet of Dagobah. He trains Luke Skywalker how to use the Force. Yoda dies at 900 years old in Return of the Jedi, but he later comes back as a Force spirit.

In the prequel movies, Yoda leads the Jedi High Council. He trains young Jedi before they get their own master. When the Clone Wars begin, he becomes a general. He leads parts of the Galactic Republic's army. Yoda is one of the few Jedi who survived Order 66. This event led to the Jedi being hunted down. After fighting Emperor Palpatine, Yoda had to go into hiding. Yoda's spirit also appears in the sequel trilogy. He gives advice to an older Luke about training Rey.

Who Created Yoda?
- What is Yoda Like?
Yoda in Books and Comics
Yoda in Pop Culture
- Yoda Toys and Merchandise
  - Lego Yoda
Yoda's Teachings
Relationships
- Jedi Master-Apprentice Tree
See also

Who Created Yoda?

The creator of Star Wars, George Lucas, first thought that Obi-Wan Kenobi would train Luke Skywalker. But he decided it would not make sense for Obi-Wan to just watch Luke fight. So, Obi-Wan was removed from the story. Lucas then created Yoda to be Luke's new teacher.

Lucas asked Jim Henson, who created the Muppets, to voice Yoda. Henson was busy, so he suggested Frank Oz for the role. The make-up artist, Stuart Freeborn, said Yoda's face was based on his own and Albert Einstein's. For the movie The Phantom Menace, Yoda was made to look younger. He was mostly a puppet, but some parts used computer-generated imagery (CGI).

What is Yoda Like?

Grand Master Yoda is one of the oldest and most powerful Jedi Masters in the Star Wars universe. George Lucas wanted many details about Yoda's life to remain a mystery. We do not know Yoda's home planet or his exact species. The Star Wars Databank just says he is of an "unknown species."

Yoda's CGI appearance in Attack of the Clones

Yoda's special way of speaking was created by Lucas and Lawrence Kasdan. It was then developed by Frank Oz. Yoda often speaks in a different word order, like "Powerful you have become."

The Star Wars movies and other stories show that Yoda helped train almost every Jedi Master. In the prequel films, he teaches many young Jedi at the Jedi Temple. This happens before they are given a master. In The Empire Strikes Back, Yoda says he had been training Jedi "for 800 years." This means he was a Master Jedi for a very long time.

Yoda in Books and Comics

Yoda appears a lot in the Star Wars Expanded Universe. These are stories set before or during the prequel movies. For example, in Sean Stewart's 2004 book Yoda: Dark Rendezvous, Yoda sends someone to pretend to be him. This person goes to talk to Dooku, because Yoda thought Dooku's offer was a trick.

Yoda also appears in Dark Horse Comics' Republic. He is also in other stories related to the Clone Wars. In 2014, many of these older stories were called Star Wars Legends. They are no longer part of the main Star Wars story.

Since 2014, Yoda has been in new official Star Wars books. These include Dooku: Jedi Lost and Master & Apprentice. These stories happen before The Phantom Menace. He will also be in the upcoming The High Republic Adventures. This series is set 200 years before the prequel trilogy.

Yoda in Pop Culture

In 1980, musician "Weird Al" Yankovic made a funny song called "Yoda". It was a parody of the song "Lola" by the Kinks. He later rerecorded it for his 1985 album Dare to Be Stupid.

The Yoda Fountain at Industrial Light & Magic headquarters.

In 2007, Empire magazine named Yoda the "25th greatest movie character of all time." Fandomania.com also ranked Yoda at number 60 on their list of "100 Greatest Fictional Characters."

Yoda is also part of Disney's Star Tours: The Adventures Continue ride. Frank Oz provides his original voice for the attraction.

A professor named David Ager said that Yoda's way of speaking is very similar to the Hawaiian language.

In 2017, a funny mistake happened in a social studies textbook. An image of Yoda sitting next to King Faisal was accidentally printed. This picture was from the signing of the Charter of the United Nations in 1945. The textbook was removed once the mistake was found.

In 2019, the store Poundland used Yoda's voice for their self-service checkouts in the United Kingdom.

Yoda Toys and Merchandise

TomTom GPS devices have a "Yoda" voice option. It is part of their "Star Wars" voice series.

Lego Yoda

The Lego Yoda minifigure was the first Lego figure to be shorter than other toys. It has shorter legs than other action figures.
Yoda appears in TV shows based on the Lego Star Wars toys. These include Lego Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles and The New Yoda Chronicles. He is the main character in these shows. He also appears in The Padawan Menace and Droid Tales.