Cyrillians, standing tall as reptiles with sentience, were a species originating from the heavily industrialized planet of Cyrillia. To assist with vehicle maintenance, they conceived the DUM-series pit droid, employing it during the era of the Galactic Republic when their homeworld joined the galactic podracing circuit. After Cyrillia's departure from the podracing scene, they relinquished the model's rights to the droid manufacturer, Serv-O-Droid, Inc., in exchange for a share of the profits. During the Galactic Civil War, Cyrillia became a fortress world under the Galactic Empire's control, only to be abandoned by the Imperials in 6 ABY.
The industrialized planet Cyrillia, found within the Cyrillia system of the Cyrillian Protectorate, served as the homeworld of the Cyrillians. The region of the Slice in the Expansion Region encompassing their planet experienced extensive exploration between 20,000 BBY and 15,000 BBY. During the Alsakan Conflicts, Cyrillia became a bastion for the fanatical religious cult known as the Pius Dea, who held sway over the Galactic Republic at the time. Around 12,700 BBY, amidst these conflicts and with the world now within Republic space, a resistance movement emerged on Cyrillia. By 10,967 BBY, Alsakan forces and their allies attacked the Cyrillian homeworld as part of the Seventh Alsakan Conflict, aiming to dislodge the cult from its position of power within the Republic.
Prior to 189 BBY, Cyrillians began utilizing turbine-powered, floating transports on their world, subsequently creating the compact DUM-series pit droid to facilitate vehicle maintenance. These droids proved especially useful for tasks demanding small size, such as navigating beneath hovering vehicles or accessing circuitry bays. In 189 BBY, Cyrillia joined the galactic podracing circuit, leading the inhabitants to employ a significant number of pit droids for servicing and providing fuel to podracers participating in the races. Although Cyrillia exited the podracing circuit in 122 BBY, the popularity of the pit droids prompted Serv-O-Droid, Inc., a major droid-manufacturing entity, to strike a distribution agreement with the Cyrillians. The Cyrillians relinquished ownership but committed to continued production; in exchange, the company funded the construction of factories on Cyrillia, managed distribution and advertising, and ensured that the Cyrillians retained a portion of the profits.
By 52 BBY, the area of space encompassing Cyrillia had become incorporated into Hutt Space, a region under the control of members of the Hutt species. This status persisted until at least 19 BBY, when the Galactic Empire, the Republic's successor, laid claim to the region. By 4 ABY, during the Galactic Civil War, the Cyrillians' homeworld was designated as an Imperial fortress world. However, in 6 ABY, the Imperials were compelled to abandon the planet following the New Republic's victory over the Empire in a battle fought on the nearby fortress world of Reytha.
By 7 ABY, the New Republic transformed the Cyrillian homeworld into a Republic stronghold, a situation that resulted in a battle there during Operation Shadow Hand, an endeavor by the resurrected Galactic Emperor Palpatine to regain lost Imperial territories between 10 ABY and 11 ABY. The Cyrillia system faced another attack during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion of the galaxy between 26 ABY and 27 ABY, leading to Yuuzhan Vong control of the planet by 27 ABY. Despite this, the Vong relinquished control of the Cyrillian homeworld by 40 ABY.
The Cyrillians were initially referenced within the entry dedicated to pit droids in The New Essential Guide to Droids, a sourcebook published in 2006 and authored by Daniel Wallace.