When Luke first ignites a lightsaber in Obi-Wan’s home on Tatooine, that blue blade became etched in our minds as synonymous with a Jedi Knight. But as the Star Wars universe began to expand, new lightsaber colors were introduced and the term Jedi Knight got redefined.
Does a Jedi Knight have to wield a blue blade? No.
While in the original Star Wars movie series, both Obi-Wan and Luke wield a blue lightsaber, no rule requires a Jedi Knight, or any Jedi rank or class, to carry a blue lightsaber. Instead, lightsaber color is determined by the individual, irrespective of the path within the Jedi Order that they choose.
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Why do some Jedi have green lightsabers?
It is a right of passage for a Jedi to craft their own lightsaber. One cannot simply go to a store and buy a lightsaber.
Each Jedi’s lightsaber is unique to them. They may borrow parts and pieces from other lightsabers, from store-bought materials, and even items scavenged from broken-down machinery, but each construction is unique.
And nothing is more unique about a lightsaber than its color. While color is not completely unique, many Jedi wield blue blades and many Jedi wield green blades, the process behind how a lightsaber gets its color is what makes each blade truly one of a kind.
What gives a lightsaber its color?
Fundamentally, a lightsaber derives its color from the kyber crystal that resides within the blade’s hilt.
A kyber crystal is a colorless crystal that is naturally attuned to the force. Each Jedi youngling goes through a trial to earn their kyber crystal. Upon successful completion of their trial, a kyber crystal chooses to bond with them and it is during this bonding process that each crystal gains its color.
The color the crystal becomes directly reflects that Jedi youngling and their connection with the force.
Once the youngling has used the kyber crystal to construct their lightsaber, they can ascend to the status of Padawan.
What is the Jedi Consular class?
As a part of Star Wars Legends, all the stuff removed from canon when The Force Awakens was released, there were three Jedi classes, the Guardian, the Consular, and the Sentinel. These classes are featured heavily in many Star Wars video games, like KOTOR.
When a youngling, or Jedi initiate, completed their initial training and successfully earned their kyber crystal, they were given the choice of three potential Jedi paths to follow. It was this choice that determined the color of the kyber crystal they used.
The Jedi Consular class is the one that uses green kyber crystals in its blades. Choosing this path meant that the Jedi would be more focused on scholarly and diplomatic pursuits.
Jedi Consulars were said to excel at meditation, diplomacy, and wielding the force in non-violent ways. Some of the positions a Consular Jedi might fulfill include Ambassador, Diplomat, Healer, Lore Keeper, Researcher, and Seer.
Their choice of wielding a green lightsaber is said to have been a symbol of their commitment to peace.
What are other types of Jedi with Green lightsabers?
While it is common for certain types of Jedi to wield certain colored lightsabers, there are no set-in-stone rules here. Any Jedi could wield a green lightsaber. In fact, some Jedi throughout the Star Wars universe have wielded differing colored blades throughout their lifetimes.
While Legends used the color green to signify a Jedi’s desire to pursue scholarly teachings and diplomacy, the new in-canon consensus is that a Jedi can wield any color lightsaber they choose.
That said, since a kyber crystal’s color is a sort of reflection of the Jedi’s soul and connection with the force, you could probably find some striking similarities between the Jedi throughout history who have wielded a green blade.
Then again, there are always those who break the mold.
Can a Jedi Guardian have a green lightsaber?
A Jedi Guardian is said to walk the path of defending the weak. When diplomacy fails, you call on the Jedi Guardians to take on the battle.
Each Guardian is exceptionally skilled with their lightsaber, oftentimes mastering multiple lightsaber forms. They are the soldiers of the Jedi, and as such, they keep themselves in peak physical condition.
As a nod to their solidarity, most Guardians chose to craft and wield a blue lightsaber, though this is not strictly required.
Some Guardians don’t even carry lightsabers when they fight. For instance, pilots use their Guardian skills to increase their accuracy with a laser cannon instead of a lightsaber strike.
While Blue is most often associated with the Guardians, each Jedi is free to craft a lightsaber with whatever color crystal best suits them. This is well-reflected in the many Star Wars RPGs (like KOTOR), where initial selection of the Guardian class requires a green blade, but further along in the storyline, you have the option to wield whichever lightsaber you choose.
Just like with the Consular class, much of the information out there on the Guardian class is no longer canon. This only further opens things up to allow a Guardian to wield a green lightsaber.
Can a Jedi Sentinel have a green lightsaber?
The Jedi Sentinel is the third and final Jedi Class. A Sentinel is said to be a blend between a Guardian and a Consular. They also employ advanced skills that are not related to the force or lightsaber combat. These skills can include crafting, demolitions, spycraft, and more.
This class is far rarer than the Guardians or Consulars. The Jedi who do choose this path often serve as spies, recruiters, artisans, and guards. And the lightsaber most of them carry features a yellow kyber crystal.
Just like the other classes of Jedi, there is no hard-set rule requiring a Sentinel to wield a yellow lightsaber; they could just as easily wield a green one if that were their choice.
In fact, since Sentinels are often attempting to blend in with those around them or are focused on non-combative tasks, you rarely ever see a Sentinel with a lit lightsaber, with the notable exception of the temple guards.
This propensity to not use a lightsaber makes it difficult to gauge how many sentinels wield green lightsabers.
Can a Jedi Knight have a green lightsaber?
Usually, Jedi Knights are associated with the Guardian class, the ones who protect the inhabitants of the galaxy with their lightsaber and mastery of the force. But you don’t have to take the Guardian path to become a Jedi Knight. That is because a Knight is simply a rank in the Jedi Order.
The Jedi have four achievable ranks: youngling (also referred to as initiate), Padawan, Knight, and Master.
To ascend to the next rank up, except for Master, each Jedi had to undergo a trial. Although Padawans were sometimes moved up to Knight for successfully completing difficult missions.
Every single Jedi, regardless of what path they take, becomes a Jedi Knight. Even healers and researchers are Jedi Knights; they just serve the Order in a way that usually doesn’t involve lightsaber combat.
But all Jedi are trained with lightsabers at a young age, and all Jedi, regardless of the position they serve, at least own a lightsaber, even if they don’t carry it on their person.
What Jedi have green lightsabers?
Throughout the history of the Star Wars universe, many Jedi, irrespective of class or rank, have wielded a green lightsaber. Here is a shortlist of some of the most notable Jedi.
Yoda: arguably one of the most famous Jedi to wield a green lightsaber, he preferred to settle matters through diplomacy. But when he did need to resort to powering up his lightsaber, he could wield it with ferocity.
Luke Skywalker: unlike most Jedi, Luke switches lightsaber colors throughout his life. The first blade he wields is Anakin’s blue one. Later, when we see him in Return of the Jedi, he presents as a Jedi Master wielding a green lightsaber. And then, with the release of the Force Awakens, we see him return to using the blue lightsaber.
Qui-Gon Jinn: the Jedi master who discovered young Anakin while stranded on Tatooine, wielded a green lightsaber.
Ahsoka-Tano: as Anakin’s apprentice, she wields two green lightsabers. She is also another case of a Jedi who switches lightsaber colors. After wielding a pair of blue lightsabers for a very short time (thanks to Anakin’s tweaking), she finally ends up wielding a pair of white lightsabers.
Honorable mentions: Depa Billaba, Bultar Swan, Stass Allie, Luminara Unduli, Kit Fisto, and many unnamed Jedi featured in the various movies, shows, books, comics, and games. Even Anakin Skywalker wielded a green lightsaber (borrowed) for a short period of time and who can forget General Grievous twirling two stolen green lightsabers like deadly saw blades as he advanced on Obi-Wan.
Conclusion
There are no hard rules in the Star Wars universe that require certain Jedi to wield a certain blade color. Each lightsaber is as unique as the Jedi that wields it. A green lightsaber blade, which is most commonly associated with the no-longer-canon Jedi Consular class, can in fact, be wielded by any Jedi Knight, Padawan, or Master, regardless of their chosen vocation.
Green is a very common color of lightsaber blade, with many Jedi throughout the history of the Star Wars universe having wielded one.
Unless radical changes are made in the future to current Star Wars canon, green will remain a common-colored lightsaber that can be wielded by any Jedi who chooses to do so.