‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’: How Han Got His Name

Lawrence Yee
Movies Star Wars
Movies Star Wars

SPOILER ALERT: Warning, this article contains spoilers from Solo: A Star Wars Story — an anthology film about Han Solo. Proceed at your own risk.

Solo: A Star Wars Story fills in many blanks in Han Solo’s past, including how he met his lifelong friend Chewbacca, his frenemy Lando Calrissian, and how he came to own the Millenium Falcon.

But one of the more interesting revelations was how Han earned his last name — Solo.

Han was one of many orphans working for Lady Proxima on his homeworld of Corellia. These children are trained to pillage and steal parts and supplies, with the most valuable being coaxium — a highly prized and valuable starship fuel.

Han and his childhood friend Qi’ra try to use stolen coaxium to leave Corellia, but are betrayed by a border agent. Qi’ra is captured, and Han vows to one day return and free her.

A desperate and despondent Han conscripts with the Empire, and it’s during the application process that he gets his surname.

“Who are your people?” the conscription officer asks.

“I don’t have people. I’m alone.”

“Han … Solo,” the officer improvises, giving one of the most popular characters in the Star Wars franchise a full name.

He then spends three years in the Imperial Army and falls in with the smuggler Tobias Beckett. He never fulfills his mission of rescuing Qi’ra; instead, they reunite aboard Dryden Vos’ yacht, where he learns she’s become one of the crime lord’s top lieutenants.

Little more about Han’s personal history is divulged in Solo. Later in the film, it was revealed that Han’s unnamed father worked on Corellian freighters and dreamed of becoming a pilot, a dream Han shared.

The word “solo” and the theme of being alone is a recurring note in the film. Rio’s parting words to Han are, “It’s no good to die alone.” Beckett later reminds him, “Assume everyone will betray you and you will never be disappointed.”

Solo: A Star Wars Story opens in theaters May 25.

Lawrence Yee
Lawrence is Editor in Chief of FANDOM. He grew up loving X-Men, Transformers, and Japanese-style role playing games like Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy. First-person shooters make him incredibly nauseous.