I have heard people misgendering Baby Yoda because "Yoda" ends in "-a." Yoda is male. Google confirms this.
This is not a girly name like "Camilla" or "Cruesa" It is a very masculine name like "Agrippa" Let me, father Aeneas, explain this to you, please THREAD #ClassicsTwitter
This is not a girly name like "Camilla" or "Cruesa" It is a very masculine name like "Agrippa" Let me, father Aeneas, explain this to you, please THREAD #ClassicsTwitter
Dido is not male (nor was she my wife, btw). She is female, even though her name ends in "-o." Also, Aeneas is not an accusative plural feminine noun. It is a very manly, pious Greek nominative, masculine name. It comes from αἰνή , which is fitting b/c I deserve praise 2/
Why does Yoda end in -a? Well, Agrippa was probably a Greek name from ἀγρός & ἵππος. Baby Yoda's name is Greek too, from the words βαβαί & Ὕδρᾳ . 3/
The first part of Baby Yoda's name, comes from βαβαί, which does NOT mean baby. It is an exclamation that means "This is amazing!" or "What a surprise!" This part captures the feeling people experience when they see Baby Yoda. 4/
Ὕδρᾳ means "water." When his name was adapted for a non-ancient Greek audience Ὕδρᾳ, the δ was written as two letters, an O and a D. Not knowing Greek, they thought it would be pronounced Yod-pa, which sounds stupid. So, it became Yoda. 4/
"Water" makes sense because Baby Yoda is green and Yoda's most famous ancestor lived in a swamp.
In sum, Baby Yoda is a male with a very masculine name, like mine. If you cite this in an academic journal, I use the last name "Smith" when circumstances require it. END
In sum, Baby Yoda is a male with a very masculine name, like mine. If you cite this in an academic journal, I use the last name "Smith" when circumstances require it. END
