Many of the Sith Lords use the title of Darth, yet few properties directly address the title’s meaning, history, and origins. The first Star Wars character to use the Darth title is the franchise’s most iconic villain: Darth Vader. Vader is the only Sith Lord to be referred to with the Darth title in the original trilogy (despite Emperor Palpatine having the Sith name of Darth Sidious), making it initially seem as though it was a false given name.

The prequel trilogy, however, revealed that all Sith - at least in the saga films - use the Darth title. Throughout the history of the Star Wars galaxy, beings would take on a new name upon ascending to Sith Lordship. As shown in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (and explained by its novelization by Matthew Stover), a new Sith Lord’s master would commune with the dark side itself before renaming their apprentice.

Yet the title of Darth is rarely addressed. Several sources in the original Star Wars Legends continuity - which became an alternate timeline in April 2014 - provide the Darth title with a fascinating potential origin and meaning, as well as perhaps its first .

What Does The "Darth" Title Mean?

Some might assume that the title Darth is a simple contraction of the Dark Lord of the Sith ranking, but Drew Karpyshyn’s 2007 novel Darth Bane: Rule of Two provides an even more fascinating possibility. The book reveals that the Sith title of Darth originates from the language of the Rakata - an ancient species of conquerors whose Infinite Empire ruled the galaxy for thousands of years in its early history.

There were two possible ways that Rakatan evolved into the title of Darth. The first suggests that the word Daritha (Emperor) eventually evolved into the word Darth. Another possibility is that Darth comes from the words darr (triumph or conquest) and tah (death), which became the term Darr tah before becoming Darth. Fittingly, this means that Darth signifies emperorship, the triumph over death, or conquest through the deaths of one’s enemies.

Darth comes from the words darr (triumph or conquest) and tah (death), which became the term Darr tah before becoming Darth.

The Rakatan origin of the Darth title seemingly created a slight continuity issue, however, as Rakatan history - which eventually faded into obscurity - was rediscovered long after Sith Lords began using the Darth title. The issue was fixed, however, by Star Wars: The Old Republic’s revelation that the Rakata once controlled the ancient Sith homeworld of Korriban.

Darth Andeddu Seems To Have Been The First Darth In Legends

The earliest known Sith Lord to use the Darth title is Darth Andeddu, who lived during the era of the Old Sith Empire - long after Korriban was under Rakatan rule. Fascinatingly, Darth Andeddu was obsessed with eternal life and is thought to be among the first Sith to practice the dark side power of transfer essence, which allowed a Sith to move their disembodied spirit from their original body to a new vessel.

Emperor Palpatine used transfer essence many times following his death in Return of the Jedi, allowing him to live in cloned bodies and lead the Dark Empire in Operation Shadow Hand.

This is fitting, considering that one possible meaning for the term Darth is triumph over death, which Darth Andeddu did for a time. It's worth noting, however, that many ancient Sith Lords did not use the title of Darth. Freedon Nadd, Exar Kun, Tulak Hord, Naga Sadow, and Marka Ragnos are among many ancient Sith who simply used their own names instead of taking on a Darth title with a new name, like Darth Vader and Darth Sidious.

This practice became rarer over time, though some Sith would use unorthodox Sith names during and after the events of the main Star Wars saga. Lumiya, for instance, was a genuine Sith who abandoned her birth name of Shira Brie upon ascending to Sith Ladyship but omitted the Darth title.

We Don't Know The Origin & History Of The Term In Canon

The modern canon lacks the original Legends continuity’s established history for the Darth title, unfortunately, making its current meaning unknown. There is, of course, a possibility that the Legends era’s Rakata explanation for the Darth title might become part of the modern canon, however.

Andor season 1, episode 4 “Aldhani” directly mentions the Rakata, confirming that they exist in some form in the modern canon. A future Star Wars property may delve into the history and meaning of the Darth title in the newer continuity, potentially making it a derivative of Rakatan once again.