Hork-Bajir
Encyclopedia
The Hork-Bajir ˌ are a race of alien
s in the Animorphs
novels.
The Hork-Bajir are fictional aliens that are usually about seven feet tall. They are a dark shade of green and have three-toed theropod feet. Their necks are long and they have a mouth that resembles a falcon's beak with teeth. Their legs are long and their knees bend backwards. They have blades at the wrist, arm, knees, and forehead; plus spikes on the tail. Marco
describes them as "walking salad shooters" when they are first seen in the first book because of their spikes. Their horn-like blades vary by gender, males having three and females having two, although artwork in the series does not convey this. The Hork-Bajir were taken over completely and utterly by the parasitic Yeerk
s. Despite their fearsome looks, they are peaceful beings who are xyophags (meaning they eat tree bark) that utilize their blades to harvest tree bark. Different blades have specific jobs for cutting bark. Elbow blades for a straight cut, wrist blades for taking strips of bark off, and knee blades for cutting bark close to the ground.
Unlike the traditional idea of aliens, they are not super-advanced; in fact, the average Hork-Bajir intelligence is said to around the level of a four-year-old human, except for seers (see below), though they are still considered sentient. Even with Yeerks under their control Hork-Bajir seem to have mental limits; Hork-Bajir-Controllers often speak in a mixture of human and alien languages, which is explained as being because the Hork-Bajir brain has limited linguistic abilities (their own language is believed to be very limited). They possess no technology of their own. Hork-Bajir do, however, have incredible endurance and healing ability. One, named Jara Hamee, once sliced his very head open, exposing his brain, to demonstrate the absence of a Yeerk
in his head. It immediately scarred over afterwards.
The Hork-Bajir lifespan is unknown, but is apparently shorter than that of humans or Andalites. It also seems that they grow to adulthood very quickly, as Toby Hamee
was born and grew to near-maturity in no more than a few years; The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
also mentions that Hork-Bajir choose mates sooner than Andalites do.
In combat, an Andalite
tail is faster than a Hork-Bajir blade, although Hork-Bajir warriors still pose a great threat to their Andalite counterparts and they are the main shock troops
of the Yeerk Empire.
All six of the Animorphs have Hork-Bajir morphs. Rachel and Tobias acquire them in the 13th book, and everyone else acquires the morph in the 34th book. However, Cassie and Marco have double Hork-Bajir morphs, meaning they have two Hork-Bajir's DNA. Cassie acquires one in book 34 and the other in book 44, and Marco acquires one in book 34 and the other in book 45.
. After an asteroid struck the planet several millennia ago, most of the planet was left uninhabitable apart from deep valleys that were ripped open by the impact. The Arn, who were adept at genetic engineering, created enormous trees with which the atmosphere could be maintained in the valleys. Not willing to become a race of tree-herders, they created the Hork-Bajir as being naturally suited to tree-herding. So that the Hork-Bajir remained unaware of their existence, the Arn also created a layer of blue gas halfway down the valleys: the Hork-Bajir lived above, the Arn lived below, and several types of genetically engineered monsters lived within the blue mist to scare away any Hork-Bajir.
When the Yeerk
forces discovered the Hork-Bajir homeworld, they saw not a race of tree-herders but shock troops
. They began to kidnap and take the Hork-Bajir as hosts, at first covertly but later openly. For seven months a guerilla resistance was headed by the Hork-Bajir Seer Dak Hamee and the Andalite
Aldrea
, until the Andalite forces arrived. But even then the reinforcements were small and ineffective. The Andalites and Hork-Bajir were losing the war fast. Eventually the Andalites---led by Alloran---used a quantum virus to kill the majority of the Hork-Bajir population in an attempt to prevent the Yeerks from taking more as hosts---an act considered to be a terrible crime, but which did manage to limit the Yeerks' power. Consequently the Hork-Bajir now exist in limited numbers.
The Hork-Bajir were totally enslaved for several generations, until the Ellimist
managed to free two on Earth, a married couple named Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. Tobias
and the other Animorphs managed to hide the two in a valley, which, due to the Ellimist's powers, was very hard to find. These two soon had a child named Toby (see "Seer" below), and began to liberate other Hork-Bajir from Yeerk facilities. This became the Free Hork-Bajir colony, a resistance movement against the Yeerks. Later, the last living Arn came to Earth and took DNA samples of the colony, and returned to the Hork-Bajir homeworld, using cloning techniques to create a second free Hork-Bajir group there.
When the Yeerks were defeated and driven from Earth, the Hork-Bajir were given Yellowstone Park as a new place to live, and Toby Hamee
became a non-voting member in the U.S. Senate. It is unknown what became of former Hork-Bajir-Controllers or the Hork-Bajir resistance on their home world.
On their home world, the Hork-Bajir lived in tribes which coexisted peacefully with each other. The Hork-Bajir have families consisting of a pair of life-long mates and children, though the tribal structure seems to make the family structure fairly loose.
Hork-Bajir naming seem to be similar to those used by humans in the Western hemisphere, a given name followed by a family name. Female Hork-Bajir apparently keep their own family names after choosing a mate, though children seem to inherit their father's name (for example, Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak's daughter is Toby Hamee). The Hork-Bajir have their own language, though according to Ax, it is extremely limited, and the Hork-Bajir brain is said to have limited linguistic abilities; as a result, they do not speak English well, and Hork-Bajir-Controllers are known to speak in a mixture of English and alien languages, including Galard.
were never able to eliminate. They are abnormally smart for Hork-Bajir, and usually serve as leaders of their groups. The only Hork-Bajir Seer the Animorphs
ever encountered was Toby
, the child of the freed Hork-Bajir Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. Toby was named after Tobias
, who helped Jara and Ket escape the Yeerks. Her great-grandfather, Dak Hamee, was a Seer from the book The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
, and her great-grandmother, Aldrea
, was an Andalite
nothlit
(a morpher who remained stuck in a morph forever; in this case, she willingly trapped herself in Hork-Bajir form). Their child, Seerow Hamee (named for Aldrea's father, the Andalite Prince who gave the Yeerks Z-space travel), was as far as anybody knows a normal Hork-Bajir who later fathered Jara, another non-Seer Hork-Bajir.
It is likely that seers continued to be birthed to Hork-Bajir controllers. When the Animorphs were confronted by Visser One's personal guard of Hork-Bajir, they were able to speak intelligently. Whether this is because they were seers, highly trained normal Hork-Bajir, or Yeerks controlling Hork-Bajir is not explained.
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
s in the Animorphs
Animorphs
Animorphs is an English language science fiction series of young adult books written by K. A. Applegate and published by Scholastic. Five humans, Jake, Marco, Cassie, Rachel, and Tobias, and one alien, Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill , obtain the ability to morph into any animal they touch. They name...
novels.
The Hork-Bajir are fictional aliens that are usually about seven feet tall. They are a dark shade of green and have three-toed theropod feet. Their necks are long and they have a mouth that resembles a falcon's beak with teeth. Their legs are long and their knees bend backwards. They have blades at the wrist, arm, knees, and forehead; plus spikes on the tail. Marco
Marco (Animorphs)
Marco is a fictional character from the sci-fi book series, Animorphs, written by K. A. Applegate. His last name is never mentioned.-Biography:...
describes them as "walking salad shooters" when they are first seen in the first book because of their spikes. Their horn-like blades vary by gender, males having three and females having two, although artwork in the series does not convey this. The Hork-Bajir were taken over completely and utterly by the parasitic Yeerk
Yeerk
Yeerks are a fictional extraterrestrial species from the book and television series "Animorphs" written by K. A. Applegate and published by Scholastic.-Biology:...
s. Despite their fearsome looks, they are peaceful beings who are xyophags (meaning they eat tree bark) that utilize their blades to harvest tree bark. Different blades have specific jobs for cutting bark. Elbow blades for a straight cut, wrist blades for taking strips of bark off, and knee blades for cutting bark close to the ground.
Unlike the traditional idea of aliens, they are not super-advanced; in fact, the average Hork-Bajir intelligence is said to around the level of a four-year-old human, except for seers (see below), though they are still considered sentient. Even with Yeerks under their control Hork-Bajir seem to have mental limits; Hork-Bajir-Controllers often speak in a mixture of human and alien languages, which is explained as being because the Hork-Bajir brain has limited linguistic abilities (their own language is believed to be very limited). They possess no technology of their own. Hork-Bajir do, however, have incredible endurance and healing ability. One, named Jara Hamee, once sliced his very head open, exposing his brain, to demonstrate the absence of a Yeerk
Yeerk
Yeerks are a fictional extraterrestrial species from the book and television series "Animorphs" written by K. A. Applegate and published by Scholastic.-Biology:...
in his head. It immediately scarred over afterwards.
The Hork-Bajir lifespan is unknown, but is apparently shorter than that of humans or Andalites. It also seems that they grow to adulthood very quickly, as Toby Hamee
Toby Hamee
Toby Hamee is a fictional character in the Animorphs books by K. A. Applegate.Toby Hamee is a Hork-Bajir seer, the daughter of Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. She is the first free Hork-Bajir born in the free Hork-Bajir colony...
was born and grew to near-maturity in no more than a few years; The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
The Hork-Bajir Chronicles is the second companion book to the Animorphs series, written by K. A. Applegate. With respect to continuity within the series, it takes place before book #23, The Pretender, although the events told in the story occur between the time of The Ellimist Chronicles and The...
also mentions that Hork-Bajir choose mates sooner than Andalites do.
In combat, an Andalite
Andalite
The Andalites are a fictional alien race of grazers in the Scholastic book series Animorphs.-Biology:The Andalites are fictional aliens from the book series and TV series Animorphs....
tail is faster than a Hork-Bajir blade, although Hork-Bajir warriors still pose a great threat to their Andalite counterparts and they are the main shock troops
Shock troops
Shock troops or assault troops are formations created to lead an attack. "Shock troop" is a loose translation of the German word Stoßtrupp...
of the Yeerk Empire.
All six of the Animorphs have Hork-Bajir morphs. Rachel and Tobias acquire them in the 13th book, and everyone else acquires the morph in the 34th book. However, Cassie and Marco have double Hork-Bajir morphs, meaning they have two Hork-Bajir's DNA. Cassie acquires one in book 34 and the other in book 44, and Marco acquires one in book 34 and the other in book 45.
History
Hork-Bajir did not evolve naturally: they were genetically engineered by the original dominant race on their planet called the ArnArn (Animorphs)
The Arn are fictional creatures from the Animorphs book series. The Arns' physiology somewhat resembles that of birds . It is possible that the Arn were the galaxy's masters of biological innovation. Interestingly, this race created an entire ecosystem after an asteroid destroyed much of the life...
. After an asteroid struck the planet several millennia ago, most of the planet was left uninhabitable apart from deep valleys that were ripped open by the impact. The Arn, who were adept at genetic engineering, created enormous trees with which the atmosphere could be maintained in the valleys. Not willing to become a race of tree-herders, they created the Hork-Bajir as being naturally suited to tree-herding. So that the Hork-Bajir remained unaware of their existence, the Arn also created a layer of blue gas halfway down the valleys: the Hork-Bajir lived above, the Arn lived below, and several types of genetically engineered monsters lived within the blue mist to scare away any Hork-Bajir.
When the Yeerk
Yeerk
Yeerks are a fictional extraterrestrial species from the book and television series "Animorphs" written by K. A. Applegate and published by Scholastic.-Biology:...
forces discovered the Hork-Bajir homeworld, they saw not a race of tree-herders but shock troops
Shock troops
Shock troops or assault troops are formations created to lead an attack. "Shock troop" is a loose translation of the German word Stoßtrupp...
. They began to kidnap and take the Hork-Bajir as hosts, at first covertly but later openly. For seven months a guerilla resistance was headed by the Hork-Bajir Seer Dak Hamee and the Andalite
Andalite
The Andalites are a fictional alien race of grazers in the Scholastic book series Animorphs.-Biology:The Andalites are fictional aliens from the book series and TV series Animorphs....
Aldrea
Aldrea
Aldrea-Iskillion-Falan is a fictional character in the Animorphs series.Aldrea is the daughter of Prince Seerow, a main character in Animorphs 34: The Prophecy and the heroine in The Hork-Bajir Chronicles...
, until the Andalite forces arrived. But even then the reinforcements were small and ineffective. The Andalites and Hork-Bajir were losing the war fast. Eventually the Andalites---led by Alloran---used a quantum virus to kill the majority of the Hork-Bajir population in an attempt to prevent the Yeerks from taking more as hosts---an act considered to be a terrible crime, but which did manage to limit the Yeerks' power. Consequently the Hork-Bajir now exist in limited numbers.
The Hork-Bajir were totally enslaved for several generations, until the Ellimist
Ellimist
The Ellimist is a fictional character from the science fiction novel series Animorphs.The Ellimist is an almost god-like being, displaying many reality warping powers, though it is stated several times that while he appears to be, he is not omnipotent. By standard values, the Ellimist is a force of...
managed to free two on Earth, a married couple named Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. Tobias
Tobias (Animorphs)
Tobias is a fictional character from the sci-fi book series Animorphs written by K.A. Applegate. His surname is never mentioned, but had the Ellimist not altered time in order to take his father, Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul, back to his old life, his full name would have been Tobias Fangor, the...
and the other Animorphs managed to hide the two in a valley, which, due to the Ellimist's powers, was very hard to find. These two soon had a child named Toby (see "Seer" below), and began to liberate other Hork-Bajir from Yeerk facilities. This became the Free Hork-Bajir colony, a resistance movement against the Yeerks. Later, the last living Arn came to Earth and took DNA samples of the colony, and returned to the Hork-Bajir homeworld, using cloning techniques to create a second free Hork-Bajir group there.
When the Yeerks were defeated and driven from Earth, the Hork-Bajir were given Yellowstone Park as a new place to live, and Toby Hamee
Toby Hamee
Toby Hamee is a fictional character in the Animorphs books by K. A. Applegate.Toby Hamee is a Hork-Bajir seer, the daughter of Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. She is the first free Hork-Bajir born in the free Hork-Bajir colony...
became a non-voting member in the U.S. Senate. It is unknown what became of former Hork-Bajir-Controllers or the Hork-Bajir resistance on their home world.
Culture
Hork-Bajir culture centers mainly around the harvesting of bark from the trees, as well as something close to worship of "Mother Sky and Father Deep".The Hork-Bajir describe the stars as flowers on Mother Sky's tree. Mother Sky is the general reference of the sky, and revered for the obvious rain that it brings. Father Deep was the location of the blue mist where monsters ate the Hork-Bajir who wandered too close. This was more feared and respected than revered. The Hork-Bajir also apparently have some concept of an afterlife with Mother Sky.On their home world, the Hork-Bajir lived in tribes which coexisted peacefully with each other. The Hork-Bajir have families consisting of a pair of life-long mates and children, though the tribal structure seems to make the family structure fairly loose.
Hork-Bajir naming seem to be similar to those used by humans in the Western hemisphere, a given name followed by a family name. Female Hork-Bajir apparently keep their own family names after choosing a mate, though children seem to inherit their father's name (for example, Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak's daughter is Toby Hamee). The Hork-Bajir have their own language, though according to Ax, it is extremely limited, and the Hork-Bajir brain is said to have limited linguistic abilities; as a result, they do not speak English well, and Hork-Bajir-Controllers are known to speak in a mixture of English and alien languages, including Galard.
Seers
The Hork-Bajir Seer is a genetic anomaly in the Hork-Bajir race the ArnArn (Animorphs)
The Arn are fictional creatures from the Animorphs book series. The Arns' physiology somewhat resembles that of birds . It is possible that the Arn were the galaxy's masters of biological innovation. Interestingly, this race created an entire ecosystem after an asteroid destroyed much of the life...
were never able to eliminate. They are abnormally smart for Hork-Bajir, and usually serve as leaders of their groups. The only Hork-Bajir Seer the Animorphs
Animorphs
Animorphs is an English language science fiction series of young adult books written by K. A. Applegate and published by Scholastic. Five humans, Jake, Marco, Cassie, Rachel, and Tobias, and one alien, Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill , obtain the ability to morph into any animal they touch. They name...
ever encountered was Toby
Toby Hamee
Toby Hamee is a fictional character in the Animorphs books by K. A. Applegate.Toby Hamee is a Hork-Bajir seer, the daughter of Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. She is the first free Hork-Bajir born in the free Hork-Bajir colony...
, the child of the freed Hork-Bajir Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. Toby was named after Tobias
Tobias (Animorphs)
Tobias is a fictional character from the sci-fi book series Animorphs written by K.A. Applegate. His surname is never mentioned, but had the Ellimist not altered time in order to take his father, Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul, back to his old life, his full name would have been Tobias Fangor, the...
, who helped Jara and Ket escape the Yeerks. Her great-grandfather, Dak Hamee, was a Seer from the book The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
The Hork-Bajir Chronicles is the second companion book to the Animorphs series, written by K. A. Applegate. With respect to continuity within the series, it takes place before book #23, The Pretender, although the events told in the story occur between the time of The Ellimist Chronicles and The...
, and her great-grandmother, Aldrea
Aldrea
Aldrea-Iskillion-Falan is a fictional character in the Animorphs series.Aldrea is the daughter of Prince Seerow, a main character in Animorphs 34: The Prophecy and the heroine in The Hork-Bajir Chronicles...
, was an Andalite
Andalite
The Andalites are a fictional alien race of grazers in the Scholastic book series Animorphs.-Biology:The Andalites are fictional aliens from the book series and TV series Animorphs....
nothlit
Nothlit
In the fictional Animorphs series by K. A. Applegate, a nothlit is a being trapped in a morph. If one stays in a morph for over two Earth hours, that form becomes permanent. They are unable to use the Escafil device to regain their morphing power...
(a morpher who remained stuck in a morph forever; in this case, she willingly trapped herself in Hork-Bajir form). Their child, Seerow Hamee (named for Aldrea's father, the Andalite Prince who gave the Yeerks Z-space travel), was as far as anybody knows a normal Hork-Bajir who later fathered Jara, another non-Seer Hork-Bajir.
It is likely that seers continued to be birthed to Hork-Bajir controllers. When the Animorphs were confronted by Visser One's personal guard of Hork-Bajir, they were able to speak intelligently. Whether this is because they were seers, highly trained normal Hork-Bajir, or Yeerks controlling Hork-Bajir is not explained.
Hork-Bajir terminology
These are words and names used by the fictional Hork-Bajir alien race throughout the Animorphs sci-fi book series. Some of them (the words spoken by Hork-Bajir-Controllers) may in fact be Galard-language words, which is the "common language" used in the series by Yeerks when they aren't around humans.Words
- ArnArn (Animorphs)The Arn are fictional creatures from the Animorphs book series. The Arns' physiology somewhat resembles that of birds . It is possible that the Arn were the galaxy's masters of biological innovation. Interestingly, this race created an entire ecosystem after an asteroid destroyed much of the life...
: Not a Hork-Bajir word per se, they are the species that lives on the surface of the Hork-Bajir world, beneath the fog of Father Deep; they are the Hork-Bajir's secret creators, though the Hork-Bajir didn't know they existed for most of their history. - Darkap: The Hork-Bajir word for 'fail'
- Efnud: A word that may mean "Do you want me" (book 1, ch. 6)
- Father Deep: This is what the Hork-Bajir call the thick blue haze that covers the floor of their valleys. Monsters reside in them, engineered by the Arn to keep the Hork-Bajir from discovering their colonies. Father Deep appears with Mother Sky to be a Hork-Bajir deity.
- Fellana: The Hork-Bajir word for 'thank you'.
- Fit Fit Tree: A tree on the Hork-Bajir world.
- Fraghent: A word, possibly an adjective, used to describe one of the Andalites or the Andalites collectively.
- Filshig: A word with a similar use, from book 18.
- Gaferach: A word spoken in anger during a battle. Used in book 7 as a direct object of the verbVerbA verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word that in syntax conveys an action , or a state of being . In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive...
"die", making it a noun. Possibly related to "Gulferch". - Gaffnur: An adjective used in book 7 to describe the "Andalite bandits".
- Ghafrash/Gafrash/Gafrasch: A common exclamation uttered by many Hork-Bajir, appears to refer to an enemy or a threat.
- Gullhadrash: (MM1The Andalite's Gift (Megamorphs)#1: The Andalite's Gift is the first book in the series, a set of companion books to the Animorphs series. With respect to continuity, it takes place between book #7, The Stranger and book #8, The Alien...
, p. 182) Possibly related to going crazy or out of control. - Haff: Means "(You) Go get," as in, "Haff Visser," which means "Get the Visser." (Book 20The Discovery (Animorphs)The Discovery is the twentieth book in the Animorphs series, written by K.A. Applegate. It is narrated by Marco. It is the first book in the David trilogy.-Plot summary:...
) - Halaf: A word of unknown type used in conjunction with killing "all" Andalites.
- Hruthin: The Hork-Bajir word for Andalite.
- Kanver: Another kind of tree from their native world.
- Kalashi: The Hork-Bajir word for 'wife'.
- Kalashu: The Hork-Bajir word for 'husband'.
- Kawatnoj: The Hork-Bajir word for 'child' or 'children'.
- Lewhak: A tree on the Hork-Bajir homeworld.
- Mislit: A boundary on Stoola trees that helps the Hork-Bajir determine which bark is okay to harvest.
- Mother Sky: This is what the Hork-Bajir call the sky.
- Muragg: (MM1The Andalite's Gift (Megamorphs)#1: The Andalite's Gift is the first book in the series, a set of companion books to the Animorphs series. With respect to continuity, it takes place between book #7, The Stranger and book #8, The Alien...
, p. 182) Possibly related to going crazy or out of control. - Nawin: Yet another kind of tree from the homeworld. They become hollow with age. Also called a Speaking Tree, these trees are used for long-range communication.
- Seer: A freak of Hork-Bajir nature; a seer is an unusually intelligent and perceptive member of the species. they can comprehend astro-physics and the dimensional geometry. Toby HameeToby HameeToby Hamee is a fictional character in the Animorphs books by K. A. Applegate.Toby Hamee is a Hork-Bajir seer, the daughter of Jara Hamee and Ket Halpak. She is the first free Hork-Bajir born in the free Hork-Bajir colony...
and Dak Hamee are seers. - Siff: A tree from the Hork-Bajir homeworld, seen only in book 34, The ProphecyThe Prophecy (Animorphs)The Prophecy is the thirty-fourth book in the Animorphs series, authored by K.A. Applegate. It is known to have been ghostwritten by Melinda Metz. It is narrated by Cassie and Aldrea.-Plot summary:...
. In a chapter that AldreaAldreaAldrea-Iskillion-Falan is a fictional character in the Animorphs series.Aldrea is the daughter of Prince Seerow, a main character in Animorphs 34: The Prophecy and the heroine in The Hork-Bajir Chronicles...
narrates, she identifies Nawin, Stoola, and Siff trees. - Stoola: A tree on the Hork-Bajir homeworld. Going up the trunk, there are three sections of bark that become progressively softer. The lower bark is old and hard to eat, the middle level before the mislit is good, but cannot be harvested as the tree needs it to grow. The bark above the mislit is okay to eat.
Phrases
- fallay nyot fit: May possibly mean "them to get them", as in "Do you want me to tell them to get them?"
- Fernall gahal: Related to something that reeks.
- Ghafrash fit nahar!: See Ghafrash, above.
- Harr gurfass!: An urgent command, which in this case seemed to mean "shoot there!"
- Herunt gahal!: Related to something that stinks.
- Het gafrash nur!: Shouted at Ax in book 18The Decision (Animorphs)The Decision is the eighteenth book in the Animorphs series, written by K.A. Applegate. It is narrated by Ax.The inside front cover quote is, "Ax is about to bug out...." The front cover quote is, "Change a little. Change a lot...
. See "Ghafrash/Gafrash", above. - Hitnef shellah!: Very likely means "Be quiet!" (book 20The Discovery (Animorphs)The Discovery is the twentieth book in the Animorphs series, written by K.A. Applegate. It is narrated by Marco. It is the first book in the David trilogy.-Plot summary:...
) - Hogren kalach!: Adjective used (with Taxxon as the noun) related to Taxxons that were swarming another dying Taxxon