The answer to whether Jedi live longer than non-Force-sensitive beings varies. Some Jedi, like Yoda, live for nine centuries.
Regardless of their species, since Jedi are Force-sensitive, they can both live longer and even keep a youthful appearance for a finite time.
Depending on their Force-sensitivity, Jedi may live longer.
It’s uncommon, but not unheard of, for Jedi to live into the hundreds, with a few outliers living for thousands of years. They can become immortal, but only after their body dies, and they become “One With the Force.”
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Do Jedi Have Longer Lifespans?
According to the older canon, a Jedi may live between 10 and 25 percent longer lifespans than others in their species that are not Force-sensitive. Whether they live longer at the lower or higher end of the spectrum depends on their Force-sensitivity.
The more Force-sensitive, the stronger Jedi are. They can use the Force to improve their well-being, much in the way the human species can through regular exercise and sound nutritional practices.
Suppose the average lifespan for a particular species is 100 years. Jedi at the lower end of the Force-sensitivity spectrum can live another 10 years. But those at the higher end can live another 25.
It also has a lot to do with species. Some, like Yoda, live for centuries. Others, like the human species in Star Wars, may approach a century, but typically live for decades.
There are human outliers who have lived for hundreds or even thousands of years in the Expanded Universe (EU), such as Shayoto.
Does the Force Extend Jedi’s Lifespans?
A Jedi’s unique Force-sensitivity will extend their life. However, a Jedi must direct their sensitivity toward life extension. Therefore, the Force alone does not extend lives.
So while the Force can extend a Jedi’s lifespan, an opportunity cost may also exist. They can extend in one area (life), but they may also sacrifice in another area.
And although they can focus on life extension, it’s also important to remember these Jedi can still die earlier if they succumb to severe injuries in combat. For example, Force lightning is powerful enough to mortally wound even the most powerful Jedi.
While life extension may seem like a Sith concept since some see it as personal desires over universal, it is a concept better suited for the light side.
Life extension in Star Wars taps into healing arts. An example is seen in A New Hope, when Obi-Wan Kenobi heals Luke Skywalker.
Although Obi-Wan dies before the film’s climax, he allows Vader to kill him as a distraction to give Luke, Leia, Han Solo, and Chewbacca time to escape the Death Star via The Falcon.
This is not to say evidence doesn’t exist that the Sith can use healing powers. Darth Plagueis healed himself by bending midi-chlorians to his will.
Darth Sidious even implied Sith can extend their lives when he said the dark side leads to “abilities some consider unnatural,” and odds are, those abilities also deal with life-extension.
How Long Can a Jedi Live For?
The actual lifespan of a Jedi depends on factors like Force-sensitivity and whether they’re looking to use the Force for life-extension and healing. It also depends on a Jedi’s species.
Some Jedi, like Fei, born during the Galactic Republic’s last centuries, before she died 22 years before the Battle of Yavin (also known as the Battle of the Death Star). Fei was a humanoid being with an unusually strong connection to the Force.
So strong, she didn’t even age for at least a century.
Yaddle, who is of the same species as Yoda, was born 509 years before Yavin, and died 26 years before. However, at age 483, Yaddle lived barely half as long as Yoda, implying she did not have the same connection to the Force as Yoda, or at least as far as life expectancy goes.
Here’s the kicker: Yaddle was also known as one of the saga’s most powerful Jedi.
With powers so strong, only certain Jedi (even Knights) could learn them. This implies Yaddle had a strong connection to the Force, perhaps as strong as Yoda’s.
Yaddle may not have valued life extension to the same extent as Yoda, which would explain her death at 483 as opposed to Yoda’s, at 900.
Can Jedi Become Immortal?
This question contains two answers, because it bottles down to how one defines immortality. If one believes immortality involves having a physical body, then no known Jedi or Sith has reached immortality.
If one’s idea of immortality stems from a spiritual body, then Jedi become immortal via a Force Ghost.
When a Jedi dies, their physical body may disappear and become “One With the Force,” as seen with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda.
The Sith, who could not become One With the Force unless through redemption, such as Anakin Skywalker, sought ways to gain immortality through their physical body.
This makes a full circle back to Darth Sidious’ “some consider to be unnatural” remark.
FAQs:
Who Is the Oldest Human Jedi?
To find the oldest human Jedi, one needs to look to the Extended Universe. Here, there is a Jedi named Shayoto, who lived around 800 years. He’s the oldest named human Jedi.
The Master of Shayoto’s Master (unnamed as of February 2022), is said to have lived through the Hundred-Year Darkness War, 7,000 years Before the Battle of Yavin, and the Great Hyperspace War, 5,000 years Before the Battle of Yavin.
Therefore, the oldest known human Jedi on record is this individual, who lived for at least 2,000 years.
What Age Were Luke Skywalker and Anakin Skywalker When They Died?
Anakin Skywalker was nine years old during The Phantom Menace. Since Attack of the Clones took place 10 years following The Phantom Menace, and Revenge of the Sith three years after Attack of the Clones, Anakin Skywalker was 22 when he became Darth Vader.
A New Hope takes place 19 years after Revenge of the Sith, placing Anakin at 41 and Luke Skywalker at 19. Since The Empire Strikes Back is set three years later, Anakin is 44 and Luke, 22. Finally, Anakin dies a year later during the climax of Return of the Jedi at 45.
In Return of the Jedi, Luke is 23, and is 53 in The Force Awakens, since it’s set 30 years following the Galactic Civil War. Since The Last Jedi was set around the same time as The Force Awakens, and he dies toward the end of the film, placing his death at 53.
Sion Fawkes has been covering Star Wars since January 2022, expanding his expertise in both Star Wars Canon and Legends. When not writing, you can find Sion in the gym or running trails. He also likes watching sports and listening to audiobooks.