When The Mandalorian first premiered on Disney+ in 2019, fans quickly fell in love with one of the show’s central characters. This small, adorable member of Yoda’s species quickly became beloved for his cute looks and easily meme-able facial expressions. Although the show simply referred to the character as “The Child,” the fan base started calling him “Baby Yoda,” despite the character not being Yoda himself. The “Baby Yoda” nickname stuck, with even non-Mandalorian fans having heard of the character.
However, a recent episode of the show’s second season revealed that “The Child” has a name after all – and it’s not Yoda. While explaining the character’s backstory to the titular Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal,) Jedi Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) revealed that the child is called “Grogu.”
The Internet’s reaction to the name has been mixed. Some fans have found it cute, while others feel that it sounds “silly” or “made up.”
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Mandalorian executive producer, writer and director Dave Filoni revealed that showrunner Jon Favreau came up with the name very early in the development of Season 1. Filoni explained that he had spent a great deal of time carefully considering how the name could organically be revealed, especially as the protagonist “Mando” and the Child do not share a common language. He ultimately decided on having Ahsoka reveal the name because she was able to use her Force abilities to mentally link with Grogu and experience his memories, which she would then relay to Mando.
Filoni did not reveal whether Grogu had any connection to Yoda and Yaddle, the previously revealed members of his species. However, he did indicate that Ahsoka was asking herself the same question, and that she might investigate a possible connection between the characters should she make future appearances in the show.
Both Season 1 and Season 2 of The Mandalorian are available to watch via the Disney+ streaming service. New episodes of Season 2 will premiere every Friday until December 18th.
