Sy Bisti functioned as a trade language within the so-called Unknown Regions of the galaxy. Certain Chiss individuals, notably Thrawn and Ar'alani, possessed the ability to speak it. Eli Vanto, whose parents occasionally engaged in commercial activities in the Unknown Regions, also demonstrated proficiency in Sy Bisti, which he considered a well-defined and exceptionally useful language. Commodore Karyn Faro also had the capacity to communicate in Sy Bisti to a high degree, although she lacked complete fluency.
During the time of the Galactic Empire's reign, Sy Bisti persisted in use, although its speakers were primarily less prominent figures. Imperial translator droids were unable to decipher it. The Bogolan script served as a means of writing Sy Bisti.
- Binesu —"Manifests" (verb) [2]
- Esethimba —"Aura" or "presence" (can refer to a person's height, weight, build, vocal quality, mannerisms, profession and expertise, or some combination) [2]
- Ezenti ophu ocengi —"Equipment and comlink " [2]
- Eqhuwa —"Courageous" [2]
- Ezeboli hlusalu —"Preemptive strikes" [2]
- Gubudalu —"Usurpation" [2]
- Ngikotholu —"Incommunicado" [2]
- Nikhi —"Notwithstanding" [2]
- Ohuludwu —" Monofilament line " [2]
- Omseki —"Syndrome" [2]
- Ubuphaka —"Beholden" [2]
- Xishu azwane —" Exiled " [2]
The initial introduction of Sy Bisti into the Star Wars Legends universe occurred within Outbound Flight, a novel authored by Timothy Zahn. This trade language was later reintroduced into canon through Zahn's subsequent novel, Thrawn, assuming a considerably more significant role compared to its prior literary appearance. In an interview featured on StarWars.com, Zahn verified that his inspiration for Sy Bisti stemmed from the Zulu language. Similar to Sy Bisti, Zulu incorporates numerous words with multiple syllables. Zahn elucidated that, upon identifying a word in Zulu, he would systematically shift all the vowels by one position to construct a fictional language influenced by Zulu.