All lightsaber color meanings explained: a comprehensive guide

All lightsaber color meanings explained: a comprehensive guide

One of the most easily noticeable objects in the Star Wars franchise is the lightsaber. This is a crystal-powered device that is predominantly used by the Jedi and the Sith, the two major groups of force users. If you are a fan of the hugely popular franchise, you have probably noticed that these weapons come in different colors. What determines this, and what are the different lightsaber color meanings?

Kyber crystal
Green, yellow, white, and red lightsabers. Photo: pixabay.com, @ColiNOOB, @GooKingSword, @JCK5D (modified by author)
Source: UGC

Lightsaber blades derive their color from components known as Kyber crystals. The crystals are located inside the weapon's hilt. The user must seek the crystal and form a strong bond with it.

The different lightsaber color meanings

Here is a look at all lightsaber colors and meanings.

Green

green lightsaber
Green, one of the most common lightsaber colors. Photo: pixabay.com, @ColiNOOB
Source: UGC

The green lightsaber is among the most popular alongside blue and red. One of the most significant representations of the green-colored blade is peace. The Jedi knights who use green lightsabers value harmony and peace above all else.

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These Jedi are also depicted as cooperative, helpful, and friendly. Additionally, the green lightsaber also represents the user's strong connection with nature. At times, wielders of the green color have also been shown to be extremely spiritual in their pursuit of mastery of the force.

Some of the best-known wielders of the green-bladed weapon include Luke Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn, and Master Yoda. In the film Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, Luke's weapon turns from blue to green, representing his immense development as a skilled Jedi.

Red

what each lightsaber color means
A red lightsaber, typically used by the Sith. Photo: pixabay.com, @GooKingSword
Source: UGC

Red or crimson lightsabers are widely associated with users of the dark side of the force. The red-colored weapon is typically used by dark Jedi, Inquisitors, and Sith Lords. Most movie lovers will be familiar with the most famous characters to wield red-bladed weapons including Darth Maul, Darth Sidious, Darth Vader, and Kylo Ren.

Unlike most lightsaber colors representing a user's traits, the red lightsaber gets its color from a corrupted Kyber crystal. Corruption happens through a process known as bleeding. When this happens, a dark side user can bend the crystal to his will.

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Naturally, dark side users cannot bond with Kyber crystals. They, therefore, have to channel emotions such as fear, anger, and hate into the crystal to take control. Once the crystal is bled, it cracks and, when used, emits red light.

Blue

blue lightsaber
A Jedi Knight's blue lightsaber. Photo: pixabay.com, @oxminchen
Source: UGC

Blue lightsabers are the most common in the entire Star Wars universe. The color was also among the first two original ones, the other one being red. Blue depicted the endless rivalry between the Jedi and the Sith, a constant clash of the light and dark sides of the force.

The blue color represents bravery, valor, and righteousness. Wielders of blue lightsabers were highly skilled in combat and often used force-attuned powers such as telekinesis and leaping. An additional blue lightsaber color meaning is the users' agility with sword movements, fearlessness, and never running away from a battle.

At the very core, every blue lightsaber user served as a gatekeeper and protector and played a role in keeping away the evil that would otherwise disrupt the galaxy's harmony. Some of the most famous characters to wield the blue color include Ki-Adi-Mundi, Anakin Skywalker, and Obi-Wan-Kenobi.

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Purple

purple lightsaber meaning
Mace Windu's purple lightsaber. Photo: @StarWars
Source: Facebook

Initially, there was no clear purple lightsaber meaning. The color existed primarily because Samuel Jackson, who played Mace Windu, wanted a purple lightsaber. He said that he could barely pick himself out in the crowd of regular blades after an intense battle scene.

Jackson wanted a color that would make him stand even in a scene with numerous Jedi. Mace Windu is renowned in the Star Wars universe for using a fighting style known as Vaapad. This form 7 fighting style is said to have striking similarities to the style used by dark siders.

While Mace Windu was known to align himself with selflessness, compassion, and sympathy, he could also use the dark side to defeat his adversaries. The color purple is a combination of red and blue and signifies that the user has both dark and light side powers.

Yellow

yellow lightsaber meaning
A yellow lightsaber. Photo: pixabay.com, @ColiNOOB
Source: UGC

The yellow lightsaber was commonly associated with the Jedi Sentinels, who formed one of the three schools of the overall Jedi order; the other two schools were the Consulars and the Guardians. The Guardians were renowned for their fighting abilities, the Consulars for their diplomacy, and the Sentinels for being a blend of both.

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Additionally, the Sentinels also liked to acquire additional skills that had nothing to do with the Force. These included roles such as technicians, trackers, and spies.

Orange

orange lightsaber meaning
The rare orange lightsaber. Photo: @michael.egan27
Source: Instagram

Orange lightsabers are among the rarest in the Star Wars universe, only appearing twice in Star Wars Legends and in the hugely popular 2019 video game Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Some of the characters who wield orange lightsabers in the game include rogue Jedi and the Mandalorian Knights.

The one orange lightsaber meaning is that of the balance between warmth, energy, and fire. In Star Wars Legends, orange blades were used by Plo Koon and Master Yaddle, both renowned Jedi knights.

White

white lightsaber meaning
A white lightsaber. Photo: pixabay.com, @JCK5D
Source: UGC

In the first Star Wars movie ever made, the director intended all blades to be white. However, the franchise's creator, George Lucas, later decided that Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan-Kenobi should have blue lightsabers while Darth Vader would wield a red one.

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So, what is the white lightsaber meaning? The color connotes new beginnings, cleanliness, purity, and neutrality. One of the most famous characters to ever wield the white-bladed weapon was Ahsoka Tano. After defeating an Inquisitor and acquiring his weapons, Tano purified the Kyber crystals in the weapons, making them emit a white blade.

If Ahsoka had been a typical Jedi, the crystals would have changed into one of the common colors; blue or green. However, the character was a light side user but not at all interested in the priorities, code, and ethics of the Jedi. The white color, therefore, signified her non-affiliation with the Jedi.

Pink

pink lightsaber
The rare pink lightsaber. Photo: pixabay.com, @ColiNOOB
Source: UGC

A pink or magenta lightsaber is also quite rare and has only appeared in a few games, including Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. One of the characters, Mara Jade, wields a weapon with a characteristic pink blade. The color is also among the playable options in the 2011 video game Star Wars: The Old Republic.

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The pink lightsaber comes from a super rare Kyber crystal only provided by the renowned Emperor Palpatine. The color connotes unconventionality and compassion.

What color of a lightsaber is the rarest?

black Kyber crystal
the Darksaber. Photo: @johnaleza
Source: Instagram

The answer is black. Typically, the black color would be achieved by an absence of light, which somewhat goes against how a lightsaber works. However, a black Kyber crystal weapon exists in the Star Wars universe.

The weapon, known as a Darksaber, was created by a Mandalorian known as Tarre Vizsla. The Darksaber also looks significantly different from other weapons. It is curved like a conventional sword and glows unevenly. It is also considerably shorter than the typical lightsaber.

The Darksaber symbolizes elegance, aggression, power, absence, darkness, mystery, and death. The Darksaber's creator was the first Mandalorian and forged the unique weapon for his own use.

Why is Rey's lightsaber yellow?

At the end of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Rey was shown carrying a yellow lightsaber. Well, the final scenes of the film take place where the entire Star Wars saga began, Tatooine. Rey takes on the Skywalker name and buries Leia and Anakin's weapons.

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She then walks away carrying a yellow-bladed weapon. In this case, the yellow lightsaber meaning could be that Rey transitions into a Jedi Sentinel, a feat that required the delicate balance between using the force and combat.

Besides Rey's fighting capabilities related to her use of the force, she is also accomplished in mechanical repair and piloting that require no use of the force. In the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic game, players can choose a yellow blade to signify the balance between a Jedi's mental and physical discipline.

What do the colors of the lightsabers mean?

Initially, all lightsaber crystals are neutral and have a clear color. Once a force user locates a crystal and forms a bond, the crystal then changes into a color that represents the user's traits.

How do lightsabers work?

After understanding what each blade color means, it is also nice to know how the popular Jedi and Sith weapons work. When plasma is passed through the weapon's Kyber crystal, it is concentrated and then passed through field energizers.

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The plasma ray is then focused into a single energy beam, regulated by a containment field. The regulation ensures that lightsabers do not pass through each other during combat.

Understanding the different lightsaber color meanings is key to grasping several concepts in the Star Wars universe. These include the traits, decisions, and development of numerous characters in the show.

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Authors:
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Jackline Wangare (Lifestyle writer) Jackline Simwa is a content writer at Legit.ng, where she has worked since mid-2021. She tackles diverse topics, including finance, entertainment, sports, and lifestyle. Previously, she worked at The Campanile by Kenyatta University. She has more than five years in writing. Jackline graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics (2019) and a Diploma in Marketing (2015) from Kenyatta University. In 2023, Jackline finished the AFP course on Digital Investigation Techniques and Google News Initiative course in 2024. Email: simwajackie2022@gmail.com.