Yanna

Yanna was a Wookiee female elder who was leader of a sanctuary on the planet Kashyyyk. After he helped rescue a member of her sanctuary between 19 BBY and 18 BBY, Yanna allowed the Wookiee Jedi Gungi to stay in the sanctuary and allied her people with him and Clone Force 99 to fight a convoy of Trandoshans aligned with the Galactic Empire. Using netcaster inhabitants of the forest, which Yanna and her villages saw as an ally in the fight against the Empire, the Wookiees and clones were able to defeat the convoy.
==Biography==
===Sanctuary elder===
Yanna was the elder and leader of a Wookiee sanctuary on the jungle planet Kashyyyk. During the early reign of the Galactic Empire, the Imperials used Trandoshans to begin stripping Kashyyyk of its resources, with many of the sanctuary's residents retreating further into the jungle to avoid them. Between 19 BBY and 18 BBY, one of the Wookiees who remained in the sanctuary with Yanna was captured by the Trandoshans, but after the Wookiee Jedi Gungi and his allies in Clone Force 99 freed him, the Wookiee and two other sanctuary residents bought the liberators back to the sanctuary on mylaya.
Yanna greeted the new arrivals at the base of the tree-top sanctuary and hobbled forward to press her forehead against that of the freed prisoner. She then addressed the newcomers in Shyriiwook, with the Clone Force 99 member Tech translating into basic to introduced her. Hunter, leader of the clones, explained that they were there to return Gungi to his homeworld, but that the Jedi did not know which village he was from. Kneeling in front of Gungi, Yanna placed a hand on his shoulder and lowered her head so he could touch foreheads with her. She then questioned the clones, and Hunter explained that they had formerly served the Galactic Republic, but were no allies of the Empire, and had helped the Jedi because he was only a child.
===No longer fighting alone===
Later that night, Yanna agreed to let Gungi stay in the sanctuary and gave the clones additional information on the Trandoshans. After her scouts informed her that a large Imperial convoy was headed toward the sanctuary, she approached Clone Force 99 in one of the sanctuary's feasting halls and told them that they should leave, but at the clone Echo's prompting, Clone Force 99 chose instead to stay and help the Imperials. Yanna then led the other Wookiees present, including Gungi, outside, and knelt before a tree in meditation. With one hand on the wood, the Wookiees communed with the trees and asked for their help in the upcoming battle.
As the clones reported that the Trandoshans were closing in, Gungi informed them that the trees had provided a plan. Gungi, the clones, and some of the villages warriors then ambushed the Trandoshan convoy and used a netcaster nest to defeat them. Once the fight was over, the Wookiees and their allies spent the rest of the night putting out fires that the Trandoshans had started. The following morning, Yanna sat with the victorious clones and Wookiees in the feasting hall before standing with Hunter and Tech to watch and discuss Gungi and the younger clone Omega, who were communing with a tree nearby.
==Personality and traits==
Yanna was a Shyriiwook-speaking Wookiee female with brown fur and brown eyes. She agreed to let Gungi stay in her sanctuary as his new home, but expected the clones of Clone Force 99 to leave rather then face the Empire with her people, although she accepted their help when offered. She and the Wookiees of her sanctuary believed that Kashyyyk belonged to the trees of the forest and that the Wookiees and plants were allied in their fight against the Empire. When discussing Gungi with Hunter, she claimed that the trees wept when young Wookiees like Gungi left, but sung when they returned, then wished that one day all of them might find a new path.
==Equipment==
Yanna wore a patterned orange shawl and carried a wooden staff.
==Behind the scenes==
Yanna appeared in "Tribe," the sixth episode of season two of the animated television series Star Wars: The Bad Batch, which aired February 1, 2023. She was voiced by Shelby Young, who had always dreamed of voicing a Wookiee and spoke Shyriiwook with the aid of sound designers David W. Collins and Matthew Wood.
==Appearances==
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==Sources==
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*Star Wars Encyclopedia: The Comprehensive Guide to the Star Wars Galaxy
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==Notes and references==
Category:Females
Category:Individuals with she/her pronouns
Category:Kashyyyk residents
Category:Wookiees