Star Wars: 15 Best Darth Vader Nicknames
When it comes to Star Wars, no one’s more iconic than Darth Vader, who used to be the man called Anakin Skywalker. Of course, Anakin’s life has been well-documented in the world of Star Wars because we saw the things that led him to the path of the dark side, which turned him into the dreaded villain known as Darth Vader. And because Vader has been around for a while in the storyline of Star Wars, he was one of the most well-known figures in the galaxy.
The fact that Anakin and Vader were well-known throughout the galaxy for various reasons allowed different people to refer to them using different names. Of course, only the most popular figures in the galaxy deserve to have nicknames, regardless of whether or not they are good or bad. So, with that said, let’s look at some of the best Darth Vader nicknames we’ve seen in the storyline of Star Wars.
15. Ani
If there’s one thing that we know about Darth Vader, it’s that he started out as an innocent boy named Anakin Skywalker, who was first introduced during the events of ‘Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.’ At that time, he was a slave boy that lived on Tatooine after his mother, Shmi, gave birth to him without a father. And he and his mother were working for Watto at the time that Qui-Gon Jinn
Of course, because his name was quite a handful, his mother called him “Ani,” which got stuck throughout his life on Tatooine. Only those who met him during the events of ‘The Phantom Menace’ called him Ani. This included Jar Jar Binks and Padmé Amidala. And this seems to be a very special name for Anakin because it was the nickname his mother gave him when he was just a little boy.
14. The Chosen One
As mentioned, Qui-Gon Jinn met Anakin during the events of ‘The Phantom Menace’ on the sandy planet called Tatooine. He quickly realized that Anakin was sensitive to the Force, and Jinn eventually thought about the Prophecy of the Chosen One after he learned that Anakin was born without a father. And after testing him for Midi-chlorians, Qui-Gon realized that Anakin had the highest count in the history of the galaxy.
In that regard, the Jedi Master immediately realized that Anakin could be the Chosen One to bring balance to the Force. He decided to find a way to free Anakin from slavery and take him back to the Jedi Temple to be trained as a Jedi. But because the Jedi Council didn’t want to train him due to his age and doubts regarding his inner feelings, Qui-Gon decided to train the boy himself. He passed that responsibility to Obi-Wan Kenobi as his dying wish.
13. Hero with No Fear
Anakin Skywalker eventually became a Jedi Knight under the guidance of Obi-Wan Kenobi. However, the Clone Wars broke out during his time as a Jedi, and that was when he and the other Jedi were called to action to participate in the Clone Wars to protect the Republic from the Separatists. During that time, he became one of the most prominent Jedi Knights in the entire galaxy and was often called the greatest hero among the Jedi due to his bravery and courage as a fighter on the frontlines.
The Separatists feared Anakin’s boldness, which made him so special, as the Force and his sheer luck protected him. There were times when he was so bold and reckless that it was a miracle that he survived some of his missions. But because he was so fearless and bold, Anakin became the “Hero with No Fear” in the eyes of many different people all over the galaxy. And this was ironic because he was full of fear, which was why he eventually fell into the dark side.
12. Skyguy
During the Clone Wars, Anakin took on a Padawan learner named Ahsoka Tano, who made her official debut in ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars.’ Like Anakin, Ahsoka was bold, fearless, and somewhat rebellious. She had a lot of the qualities that made Anakin who he was. And Anakin was basically looking at a mirror the entire time because of how headstrong Ahsoka was.
The problem with Ahsoka’s recklessness was that she often snapped back at Anakin whenever he tried to scold her for being a bit too bold. As such, Anakin started calling her “Snips” for being too snippy with her responses to him. In response to that, Ahsoka started calling Anakin “Skyguy,” which was a nickname that was based on his surname.
11. General Skywalker
As mentioned, Anakin Skywalker fought during the Clone Wars because the Republic turned the Jedi Order into the generals of the clone army that fought against the Separatists. Of course, Anakin was named a general during the war as he led the 501st Legion throughout the entire Clone Wars. And that was how he became friends with the most prominent clone trooper of all time, Captain Rex.
During that time, Skywalker was often referred to by the clone troopers as General Skywalker because he was a Jedi General. Of course, he wasn’t called General Skywalker just because of his status as a general but also because the clones of the 501st Legion highly respected his leadership skills and battlefield abilities.
10. Master Skywalker
We already explained that Anakin Skywalker became a teacher to Ahsoka Tano during the events of the Clone Wars. As such, taking in a Padawan meant that he was a “master” to Ahsoka Tano even though he wasn’t a Jedi Master. This was normal within the Jedi Order as Jedi Knights were still called masters by Padawans and Younglings even if they were yet to reach the rank of Jedi Master.
One of the most interesting moments wherein Anakin was called Master Skywalker was when he stormed the Jedi Temple during Order 66. He entered a room where Younglings were hiding from the clone troopers, as one of them called him “Master Skywalker” before Anakin ignited his lightsaber and started killing the children off-screen
9. The Fallen One
Of course, we all know that Anakin fell to the dark side and became Darth Vader after he betrayed Mace Windu and chose to spare Supreme Chancellor Palpatine because he needed his knowledge of the dark side to find a way to cheat Padmé’s death. The fact that Anakin fell to the dark side turned him into the Fallen One, as his betrayal of the Jedi Order allowed Palpatine to speed up the fall of the Jedi, especially when he had one of the strongest Jedi Knights helping him.
But the one scene that ultimately allowed us to see Anakin’s allegiance to the dark side was when he bowed down to Palpatine and allowed himself to be rechristened into a Sith Lord called Darth Vader. That was his first official moment as Darth Vader as he went on to kill the Jedi in the Jedi Temple and help bring about the fall of the Jedi Order.
8. Dark Lord of the Sith
As mentioned, Anakin fell to the dark side and became Darth Vader, one of only two Sith Lords that should exist at any given time due to the Sith’s Rule of Two. But not many people know that the “Darth” name in the names of the Sith Lords actually stands for “Dark Lord of the Sith.” In that regard, Vader immediately became a Dark Lord of the Sith after he fell to the dark side and joined the Sith.
During the reign of the Empire, Vader was known as the dreaded Dark Lord of the Sith because he was the one that Palpatine tasked to round up the remaining Jedi or put a stop to the Rebels that were causing the Empire trouble. While Palpatine was still the master, the people always saw Vader as the Dark Lord of the Sith due to his menacing presence during the uncontested rule of the Empire.
7. Darth
We said that the “Darth” name in Darth Vader’s name is actually a shortened way of saying Dark Lord of the Sith. In that regard, it was more of a title than an actual name because all of the Sith Lords were Dark Lords of the Sith and were Darths. But Obi-Wan Kenobi actually referred to Vader by his title.
In ‘Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope,’ Vader and Kenobi fought in the Death Star. That was when Darth Vader told his old master he was now the new master. But Obi-Wan countered that by saying, “Only a master of evil, Darth.” By calling him “Darth,” he was now looking at Anakin as a Dark Lord of the Sith instead of the former Jedi Knight he used to be.
6. “Him”
During the height of the Empire’s power, everyone feared Darth Vader because he was a ruthless and powerful enforcer who basically did whatever he wanted as long as they were in accordance with the emperor’s will. In that regard, he struck fear into the hearts of any of the surviving Jedi at that time. And Vader even inspired fear in the hearts of his very own Inquisitors.
Because of Vader’s status as the most feared presence during the Empire’s reign, many people just referred to him as “Him,” especially when they were talking about him with fear. This was quite common among the Inquisitors and the Jedi survivors of that era because they feared Vader so much that they wouldn’t even dare to mention his name.
5. Lord Vader
When Darth Vader was the Dark Lord of the Sith during the reign of the Empire, he was basically an extension of Emperor Palpatine’s authority over the Empire. That’s why all of the Imperial officers respected him during the reign of the Empire and why he was basically outside the chain of command of the Empire’s military and political structure. And during that time, he was often referred to as Lord Vader.
Because he was beyond the chain of command, Vader could do whatever he wanted, including summarily killing Imperial officers that failed him. There weren’t a lot of officers that weren’t afraid of him. And the only Imperial officers that didn’t fear Lord Vader but respected him were Grand Admiral Thrawn and Grand Moff Tarkin.
4. Commander-In-Chief
Another thing that made Darth Vader so special during the reign of the Empire was that he was basically outside the normal chain of command of the Empire. That meant he could do whatever he wanted, regardless of who he ordered. Even the highest-ranking military and political officials respected his authority and power.
As such, Vader was often considered the Commander-in-Chief of the entire Empire during Emperor Palpatine’s reign. He was Palpatine’s extension because his control over the forces of the Empire was seemingly supreme. And probably the only person that could veto any of Vader’s commands was none other than his own master.
3. Apprentice
As mentioned, Vader may have had supreme control over the military of the Empire, but he wasn’t in complete control over the Empire. That’s because he and the other Imperials were all below Emperor Palpatine, who was still the supreme ruler of the entire galaxy at that time. And we all know that Darth Vader was Palpatine’s apprentice the entire time after he fell to the dark side.
Palpatine never allowed Vader to forget that he was but an apprentice to him. Of course, Vader knew well enough that disobeying his master would be very painful or even fatal. That’s why he never tried overthrowing Palpatine for over 20 years, as even Vader feared Emperor Palpatine. And he knew that, at the end of the day, he was still just a mere apprentice to Darth Sidious.
2. Emperor’s Lapdog
At the end of the day, Darth Vader was just a glorified lapdog to Emperor Palpatine because he did everything his master told him to do. He didn’t want to disobey Palpatine because he knew what was coming for him if he decided to go against his master. As such, those who weren’t afraid of Darth Vader only saw him as a mere lapdog that followed the orders of a master that was superior to him in almost every way.
In that regard, some of the Jedi that survived Order 66 often saw Vader as the Emperor’s lapdog because of his blind obedience to his master. For them, the dark side blinded Vader and made it impossible for him to see that Palpatine was just using him as one of his pawns in the Empire. And that was true because Palpatine didn’t hesitate to try to replace Vader with Luke when the opportunity to do so presented itself.
1. Grandfather
Darth Vader never got to hear these words during his lifetime, but one of the nicknames he was known for during the events of the sequel trilogy was “grandfather.” That’s because he was a grandfather to Ben Solo, who we know fell to the dark side and became Kylo Ren. And Kylo Ren revered Darth Vader like a god because he wanted to be as strong as he was.
We saw in ‘Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens’ that Ren was trying to communicate with Vader by talking to his broken and damaged helmet. He called him “grandfather” as he was indeed Vader’s legacy. And even Kylo Ren realized that he wasn’t as strong as Vader, which was why he felt that he was living in the shadow of his grandfather.
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