A Padawan, which can also be referred to as a Padawan learner, Padawan apprentice, Jedi apprentice, or simply an apprentice, represented a specific phase in Jedi training. During this phase, a Force-sensitive individual within the Jedi Order received instruction from a Jedi Knight or a Master. Typically, the master selected their own apprentice, but this changed during the galactic Clone Wars, when the Jedi High Council began assigning Padawans. To achieve the rank of Knight, the Jedi in training needed to complete their time as a Padawan and succeed in the Trials.
During the Clone Wars period, Padawans underwent combat training and took on roles as military commanders overseeing clone troopers. However, the war's conclusion brought the implementation of Order 66 by Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, which compelled the clones to betray the Jedi Order. Despite this, some Jedi survived, and under the guidance of Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, Luke Skywalker received Jedi training. Skywalker later made an attempt to re-establish the Order, but most of his apprentices were killed, and Ben Solo turned to the dark side of the Force. Much later, Rey, a scavenger hailing from the world of Jakku, became Skywalker's apprentice and subsequently the apprentice of Leia Organa.
A Padawan represented a Force-sensitive individual undergoing training within the Jedi Order with the ultimate goal of becoming a fully recognized Jedi one day. Initially, these individuals were known as Jedi younglings and received instruction in a classroom environment alongside other students and a teacher. Upon reaching a suitable age and demonstrating readiness for combat training and more in-depth study, Padawans were typically assigned to a Jedi Knight or Jedi Master for personalized, one-on-one training. The learning process was not unidirectional; just as a Padawan gained knowledge from their master, the teacher could also learn from their student. A successful master-apprentice relationship required collaboration and mutual learning. Lily Tora-Asi, a Padawan, made a promise to her master, Jedi Master Arkoff, that she would surpass him, and she expected her own Padawan to exceed her achievements as well.
Anakin Skywalker, who was significantly older than the typical youngling and nearly denied entry into the Jedi Order due to his age, was ultimately accepted at the age of nine. Immediately after joining the Order, he was designated as the Padawan learner of Obi-Wan Kenobi, who had recently been knighted. Despite his own experiences as a young Padawan, Skywalker, during his time as a Jedi Knight, expressed surprise at Ahsoka Tano being a Padawan at the age of fourteen, questioning her readiness for the position. Kenobi initially mistook Tano for a youngling upon their first encounter. During the High Republic Era, Vernestra Rwoh became a Padawan at a young age and displayed such exceptional talent that she was knighted at fifteen, making her one of the youngest Knights of her generation. She even took on her own Padawan, Imri Cantaros, the following year.
Regardless of their age or experience, Jedi generally associated meditation with their trainers. Although they learned the basics of meditation as younglings, it was only after becoming a Padawan that a Jedi truly grasped the process, dedicating hours to weeks meditating alongside their master to uncover the truths of the Force. These moments fostered strong bonds, and a Jedi often found meditation difficult after their master [died](/article/death], even if years had passed since their last meditation together. While recovery and the resumption of meditation were possible, the experience was never the same for the affected Jedi.
A Jedi was expected to choose the Padawan they wished to train. Even though a Jedi could opt not to take on an apprentice, training the next generation of the Order was considered a Jedi's responsibility. Apprentices frequently accompanied their masters on missions as part of their individualized training. The Code prohibited a Jedi from training more than one Padawan or apprentice at a time. Most Padawans grew or wore Padawan braids to signify their rank. Upon successful completion of the Jedi Trials, a Padawan would be promoted to the rank of Jedi Knight. It was uncommon for a Padawan to not advance to the rank of Jedi Knight, but the challenges encountered and the time required to overcome them varied from individual to individual.
During the High Republic Era, a typical training experience for Padawans involved placement at a Jedi outpost with their master in the Outer Rim Territories, contributing to justice in the largely unexplored region. However, they sometimes received assignments that took them away from the outpost. Oliviah Zeveron was a human Padawan apprenticed to the compassionate Ugnaught Jedi Master Fitan, who strongly believed in the teachings of Fin-So-Rowan. Consequently, she brought her Padawan across the galaxy on a mission to impart Jedi ways and Luminous practices. Zeveron enjoyed the adventure of their travels, which were always on the move, exploring new worlds, and sampling new foods. Over time, Zeveron attempted to appear mature and conceal her excitement, but Fitan was able to see through her Padawan's serious facade.
Jedi Master Leebon granted his Padawan, Matthea Cathley, an unprecedented level of independence. Guided by the Force, Cathley's training involved following its lead, resulting in discoveries and misadventures that she readily shared with her master upon returning to their post. Based on the Holy Moon of Jedha, Cathley considered the Temple of the Kyber her home because a formal Jedi temple did not exist on Jedha due to lingering anti-Jedi sentiment stemming from the Order's past control over Jedha City. After these tensions escalated into the Battle of Jedha, Leebon was killed by the Path of the Open Hand, leading Jedi Master Vildar Mac to take Cathley as his Padawan to complete her training. By this time, Cathley's understanding of life as a Padawan had evolved due to her experiences with Mac and their mutual friend Tey Sirrek, who both treated her as an equal. This led to a challenging working relationship with Knight Zeveron, who treated her as a junior Padawan who should only speak when higher-ranking Jedi deemed it necessary, during their mission to Dalna.
Padawan Bell Zettifar and his master, Loden Greatstorm, were stationed at the Elphrona Outpost. When their rotation back to the capital of Coruscant was due, Supreme Chancellor Lina Soh established a hyperspace blockade because of the Emergences, which forced the two Jedi to remain on Elphrona for some time. During the Nihil pirates' raid on Elphrona, Greatstorm told his apprentice that he was worthy of the title of Jedi Knight, but—after Greatstorm was captured by the Nihil—Zettifar refused to undergo the Jedi Trials until he was rescued, wanting his mentor to be present at the ceremony. Following the Battle of Grizal, during which the Eye of the Nihil Marchion Ro unleashed the Great Leveler, which turned Greatstorm to stone and traumatized other Jedi on the battlefield, including Zettifar, Jedi Padawans were asked to step up and assist the Jedi Order in any way possible, similar to the more experienced Knights and Jedi Masters. As a result, several Padawans aboard the Starlight Beacon departed to help defend the Jedi Temple on the planet Takodana from a Nihil |attack.
The stress resulting from battles against the Nihil led Masters Torban Buck and Kantam Sy to revive the "Great Jedi Rumble Race" for the Padawans of Starlight Beacon. As the conflict continued, Padawan Ram Jomaram observed that masters were more inclined to have their apprentices learn through "doing" and suggested that the previous generation of Jedi had not had the opportunity to take on as much responsibility as current Padawans needed to. He theorized to fellow Padawan Reath Silas that their mentors wanted the new generation to have an easier time during missions. Silas's master, Cohmac Vitus, agreed with Sy, noting that fighting dangers across the war-torn Galactic Frontier was not the life they had been prepared for.
During the Clone Wars, the Jedi High Council began assigning Padawans to Jedi Knights instead of allowing them to choose their own masters. During the war, Padawans received combat training and were transformed into officers of the Republic Military, partly due to a shortage of military leaders. Padawans held the rank of Jedi Commander and could command forces of clone troopers as large as a regiment. This resulted in situations where young and inexperienced Padawans, many of whom were still teenagers, outranked clone troopers with significantly more combat experience. At the end of the conflict, in 19 BBY, Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, secretly the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, issued Clone Protocol 66, which forced the troopers to turn against their Jedi Generals and Commanders.
Following the establishment of the Galactic Empire, some former Padawans who had survived Order 66 or left the Jedi Order before the purge joined the emerging Rebel Alliance. This was the case for Anakin Skywalker's former apprentice, Ahsoka Tano, and Depa Billaba's former apprentice Caleb Dume, who became known as Kanan Jarrus and later took on his own Padawan, Ezra Bridger. By 0 BBY, Luke Skywalker, the son of Anakin Skywalker, began training under Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and later Yoda.
After the [Liberation of Lothal](/article/liberation_of_lothal], Ahsoka Tano took on Sabine Wren as her Padawan and instructed her for a period. Following the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY, which resulted in the deaths of both Emperor Palpatine and his apprentice Darth Vader, Skywalker attempted to rebuild the Jedi Order. However, his new generation of Jedi were killed by his nephew, Ben Solo, who succumbed to the dark side of the Force. Subsequently, Skywalker isolated himself in the First Jedi Temple on the Temple Island located on the remote planet of Ahch-To.
In 34 ABY, Rey, a scavenger from Jakku, arrived on the island to enlist his help in the Resistance's fight against the First Order, and later became his apprentice. Despite his reservations about the Jedi Order, Skywalker trained her on the Temple Island and regained his faith in the Jedi after a conversation with Yoda's Force spirit.
After the Battle of Crait, General Leia Organa introduced Rey to Ambassador Yendor Brethen of Ryloth as Skywalker's apprentice, which greatly impressed Brethen. By the time of Darth Sidious's return in 35 ABY, Rey had begun training under Organa on Ajan Kloss, where the Resistance had established a secret base. Utilizing her training, Rey eventually redeemed Ben Solo and defeated Darth Sidious once and for all.
The term "Padawan," originally spelled "Padawaan," appeared as early as George Lucas's initial story treatments for the 1977 film Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, then titled Journal of the Whills. However, it was not heard until the filming of the 1999 film Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, the first film of the prequel trilogy. In all prior works, including the original movies and early Star Wars Legends stories, the concept was referred to as "Apprentice."
Set after the events of Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, the Star Wars: Trials on Tatooine VR experience released by ILMxLAB featured an unidentified hopeful Padawan who aspired to join Luke Skywalker's new Jedi Order. However, during an ensuing mission to Tatooine, the Padawan was attacked by an Imperial remnant force. Ultimately, the Jedi emerged victorious.