Editor's Note: The following article contains spoilers for Episode 1-3 of Andor.While the sprawling and ever-expanding world of Star Wars features an incredibly diverse assortment of cultures and civilizations, none have garnered as much fuss as the indigenous people appearing in Andor.
Featuring a number of flashbacks, the first three episodes of Andor allow more than a cursory glance into the history and background of Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), delving deep into a mysterious planet called Kenari whose people go by the same name.
Wait, What Is Kenari Again?
When trying to find his sister in a brothel on Morlana One, Cassian refers to Kenari as a small Mid Rim system. Located between Expansion Region and Outer Rim Territories, the Mid Rim Territories are a region of the galaxy with very few natural resources. Due to the lack of assets, the residents of these territories had to work their fingers to the bone to earn whatever they had. Naboo, Takodana, and Kashyyyk are some other Mid Rim systems featured in Star Wars. Given that in Star Wars systems and planets often share the same name, Kenari is probably the name of the lush, green planet fans get to see in Cassian’s flashbacks.
What Language Do the Kenari Speak?
One of the most special things about the indigenous people inhabiting this mysterious, unheard-of planet is that they do not speak Galactic – a language that is shared by almost all kinds of beings in Star Wars – except aliens, of course, who seldom speak in intelligible terms. The Kenari speak in Kenari – at least that is how it looks, with the language having no subtitles at all. Throughout the featured flashbacks, fans have no idea what is being said, despite the fact that a lot is being unpacked in these scenes. Instead of discombobulating the full-throttle action, it only adds to the building tension in the show, allowing for the mystery of the planet to speak for itself.
Why Are the Kenari Only Children?
For one, they all appear to be kids, with the oldest being no older than 18. The flashbacks show young Cassian, here known as Kassa, witnessing a number of interesting events with his people, all of whom appear to be indigenous to Kenari.
Since the Kenari speak a foreign tongue, much about the planet is shrouded in mystery, and hence it is up for interpretation. For example, the kids seem to be doing it all on their own without the supervision of any guardians, legal or otherwise. One can conjecture that the adults are either dead, captured, or killed by an enemy, or perhaps at work in the mines. Considering the disaster and the state of the planet's atmosphere, this might be a possibility. As of now, there is no concrete evidence in favor of or against any of the most suggested theories.
Another interesting thing about the Kenari is that they seem to make a lot of use of scavenged materials including bits of machinery and wares. The village, in fact, seems to be made of random bits of broken tools and the like, most of which seem to be essentially nonfunctional. Since very little is known about the planet, one can only theorize that the Kenari might not be a very resourceful people, and they make do with what they have.
What Happened on Kenari? Why Is it Abandoned?
In the flashback, the Kenari kids, interestingly in a mingled state of fear and fascination, witness a vessel crashing and exploding in the sky. A group of kids, prompted into action, end up by the site of the incident as well as the mines. Kassa survives, thanks to a pair of scavengers Maarva (Fiona Shaw) and Clem (Gary Beadle), who take him along before the Republic ships were assumedly going to wipe everyone out on the planet. The mining accident seems to have made the atmosphere toxic to outsiders. We see the dead men on the ground — called corsairs but believed to be separatists — with jaundiced yellow skin and Maarva and Clem both wear gas masks on the planet. Whether it was just a mining accident or an accident that served as a potential cover-up for a genocide is still in the grey. It's clear the children have adapted to the planet's atmosphere. Kenari was said to be abandoned and made off-limits to everyone after this incident.