What Race Is Darth Maul?

Darth Maul is one of the most iconic movie villains of all time.

The red spiky menace first debuted in the 1999 film The Phantom Menace and was the main villain of the first prequel film.

His menacing appearance coupled with his duel bladed scarlet red lightsaber ensured that he would remain in the memories of all Star Wars fans even after being sliced in two by Obi-Wan Kenobi.

A question not answered in The Phantom Menace was what race is Darth Maul?

Are there others like him? And how on earth did he survive being cut in half?

Well read on and we will answer any questions you have about Maul.

Maul’s Species

So now we know Maul’s backstory and which planet he came from it is time to discuss what race he is.

Maul is a Zabrak, the Zabrak are a near-human carnivorous species, their native planet is actually Iridonia and not Dathomir.

Most members of the species have distinctive horns atop of their heads and also have two hearts.

The Zabraks had actually evolved to be tough, due to the nature of their homeworld of Iridonia, their two hearts allowed oxygenated blood to be pumped around their bodies much faster than other species, which meant they could go faster for longer.

Although we mentioned previously that Zabrak’s native home is Iridonia, some did settle on Dathomir, which is where the illusion of Dathomir being their native home comes from.

How Did the Zabrak Become Spacefaring?

With their fierce resilience and unmistakeable ring of horns, the Zabrak have never been ones to sit still—on Iridonia or beyond. But how did they make the leap from their harsh homeworld to the stars?

The answer lies in a heady mix of determination and a little help from the neighbors. Early in the days of the Old Republic, the Duros (galactic trailblazers known for their knack with starships) introduced the Zabrak to the secrets of spaceflight. It wasn’t long before the ever-driven Zabrak caught on, built their own vessels, and began forging their own path through the galaxy.

Driven by their tenacity and impressive pain tolerance, Zabrak explorers wasted no time in searching for more accommodating worlds than windy Iridonia. Their pioneering spirit and strong will led them to establish colonies on distant planets. Despite being scattered among the stars, Zabrak colonies remained as fiercely loyal to each other as they were to Iridonia itself.

So, while Maul’s people may have started on a perilous world, they soon became adept spacefarers—proof that a tough environment and an even tougher attitude can go a very long way.

On Dathomir, the female species of the Zabrak, known as Nightsisters, ruled over the Nightbrother males and practiced powerful dark side magick.

The female Zabraks who originated from Dathomir didn’t possess the cranial horns that the typical Zabrak species did.

Although the Nightsisters practiced powerful dark side magick, the Zabraks fought continuously against the Galactic Empire’s attempts to undermine and subvert them, and because of this they joined the Alliance to Restore the Republic and fought alongside them instead of surrendering.

Zabraks are considered self-determined and proud, which often came off as arrogant to some, but there is no denying that they are the more independent species in the galaxy.

They would typically take on roles in society that minimized their needs to be ordered about by other people.

You may also spot, especially on Darth Maul, facial tattoos.

These usually indicate familiar ties, but could just be personal preference of an individual’s taste. Zabraks, like Darth Maul, are especially known for their striking tattoo patterns. You might wonder if other characters, such as Eeth Koth, share the same heritage. While both are Zabrak, each displays unique tattoo designs—Eeth Koth’s markings differ, reflecting his own background and individuality.

Is Eeth Koth Also a Zabrak?

You might be wondering if Darth Maul is the only Zabrak we’ve seen in the Star Wars galaxy. The answer is—he’s not alone! Eeth Koth, the Jedi Master who appears in both the prequel films and The Clone Wars series, is also a Zabrak. However, there are some notable differences between the two.

For starters, Eeth Koth hails from Iridonia, the true homeworld of the Zabrak species, while Darth Maul’s story is more closely tied to Dathomir. Also, although both characters sport facial tattoos and signature cranial horns, the style and meaning behind their markings can vary greatly, often reflecting personal, familial, or even cultural affiliations rather than indicating any direct connection between the two.

In short, both Maul and Eeth Koth are indeed Zabraks—they just come from different backgrounds and traditions within the same fascinating species.

Mauls Life Before Phantom Menace

We all know Maul as the menacing Sith who killed Qui-Gon Jinn but what was his life like before we first met him as a hologram on the Trade Federation Battle Station.

Maul was born on the planet Dathomir during the Galactic Republic era.

He was the son of a woman named Mother Talzin, the leader of a group called the Nightsisters of Dathomir.

Maul had two siblings, the Nightbrothers Savage Opress and Feral.

Darth Sidious sensed potential in Maul and took him as his apprentice whilst he was still only a child.

He was anointed Darth Maul by his Sith Master and was raised to despise the Jedi that served the light side of the force.

Desiring the fall of the Jedi Order, Maul would train daily and wait for the day he was strong enough to exact revenge on the Siths ancient foes.

The time for Sith to reveal himself would be during the invasion of Naboo, and well you know the rest.

But what you may not know is that Maul survived the strike from Obi-Wan that seemed to kill him, but we will discuss the rest of his life a bit later.

Maul’s Life After The Phantom Menace

I’ve written up a more detail article on How Maul survived here to read more about this.

So, like we mentioned earlier, Maul survived being sliced in half by Obi-Wan Kenobi, but how?

Well, after this fight, Maul ended up on a junk planet named Lotho Minor, it is here that he managed to survive by solely focusing on his hatred for Obi-Wan.

He remained on this planet for years and survived on the vermin that lived in the junk piles, this of course made him turn mad and he ended up crafting legs out of junk that scarily resembled spider legs.

Eventually he was found by Savage Opress, who would later become Count Dooku’s apprentice.

Opress took Maul back to Dathomir, where the Nightsister Mother Talzin used dark magick to restore Maul’s body and mind.

Thus Darth Maul was reborn, and Opress and Maul began a rampage across the galaxy.

It is during this time that Maul takes control over the planet of Mandalore, which was certainly no small feat.

Throughout The Clone Wars, Maul would encounter Obi-Wan multiple times and the Jedi would always slip from his grasp, which led Maul to become more irritated.

To get his revenge on Obi-Wan, Maul killed Kenobi’s previous love Duchess Satine Kryze, this caused a ripple in the force that his former mentor Darth Sidious would sense, and thus knew Maul was still alive.

Sidious then declared Maul and Opress his two rivals.

The End Of Maul’s Life

In Rebels, Maul tried to locate Obi-Wan as he was finally close to his revenge, but had no luck in doing so, so he manipulated Ezra Bridger into coming to Tatooine which put the boy into the path of Tusken Raiders, of course Obi-Wan found the boy and thus Maul now knew where Obi-Wan was, and Maul and Kenobi once again engaged in combat for the final time.

Maul knew that Obi-Wan was on the planet for a reason, he was protecting something – or someone.

The battle was over as fast as it had begun, Obi-Wan sliced Maul’s double-bladed lightsaber in half, as was his chest, Maul fell and was caught by the Jedi and layed dying in his arms.

In the Zabrak’s final moments, he asked Obi-Wan “is it the chosen one?” to which Obi-Wan said it is, and with the life fading from Darth Maul’s eyes and in his final moments he uttered his last word “He will avenge us”.