Ahsoka Tano and Anakin Skywalker had a meaningful relationship. So why does Anakin call her "Snips?" What does it mean, and when did it start?

Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Ahsoka episode 4.

Summary

• Anakin Skywalker called Ahsoka Tano "Snips" because of her snippy and maddening attitude when they first met, but it later became a sign of affection and mutual respect.
• Ahsoka used to call Anakin "Skyguy" as a way to irritate him, but it eventually became a term of endearment because he defended her, taught her valuable lessons, and saw her as a friend.
• In Ahsoka episode 4, Anakin calling Ahsoka "Snips" is not only fanservice but also a reminder that he is the version of him that returned after his redemption, showing that their bond and care for each other still remain.

What is the meaning behind Anakin Skywalker calling Ahsoka Tano “Snips” in Ahsoka and other Star Wars stories? Ahsoka was Anakin’s Padawan during the Clone Wars. Despite their relationship getting off to a rocky start, they soon became close friends and confidantes – he taught her to fight, protect herself, and believe in her instincts, even if those instincts sometimes strayed from the Jedi way. Anakin played a massive role in Ahsoka’s characterization and growth, and that still shines through years later during the Ahsoka Disney+ TV show.

Despite the importance of their relationship, Ahsoka and Anakin also hurt each other deeply. Ahsoka left the Jedi Order and Anakin behind after being falsely accused of treason by the Jedi Council in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and Ahsoka, in turn, had to deal with the knowledge her old Master had become Darth Vader, as she learned in Star Wars Rebels. Ahsoka and Anakin’s relationship has had its ups and downs, but throughout it all, one thing remained constant: their affectionate nicknames for each other. Ahsoka will always be Snips, and Anakin, deep down, will always be Skyguy.

Anakin Calls Ahsoka "Snips" Because Of Her Snippy Attitude

When Ahsoka and Anakin met for the first time in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie, Anakin was annoyed that he had been assigned a Padawan. Ahsoka, meanwhile, was in over her head, a bit too confident in her abilities as a young and inexperienced Jedi entering a war zone for the first time. Anakin antagonized her, and they soon wound up bickering like sibglings; it didn't take long for Ahsoka to become noted for teasing him with her "snippy" and maddening attitude, even as she claimed to want to learn from him. Ahsoka called Anakin "Skyguy" to rile him up, and Anakin responded by calling her "Snips."

Anakin & Ahsoka's Nicknames Reflect Their Relationship

Though these nicknames began as a way to irritate one another, by the end of their Master and Padawan relationship, they became a sign of affection and mutual respect. Though Ahsoka may have initially been Snips because of her snippy attitude, the nickname’s unspoken meaning became that she should trust herself and that she’s earned the right to be confident. Anakin had seen her grow in ways no one else has, and Snips is a reminder of where she started and everything she’s accomplished since then.

While Ahsoka used to call Anakin Skyguy as a way to irritate him, too, and make fun of his name and his general reputation, she later used it as a term of endearment. Anakin will always be Skyguy to her, the man who defended her against the Council’s accusations, who taught her the lessons that saved her life during Order 66, and who saw her as more than just a Padawan, but as a friend, as well. These nicknames reflect how much their relationship developed over the years as they fought in the Clone Wars together, side by side.

Why Anakin Calls Ahsoka "Snips" In Ahsoka Episode 4

In Ahsoka episode 4, “Part Four: Fallen Jedi,” Ahsoka encounters Anakin in The World Between Worlds – a dimension that connects all of space and time – after being defeated by Baylan Skoll while trying to stop Morgan Elsbeth from getting the coordinates to find Thrawn. As Ahsoka wakes up, she hears Anakin’s voice behind her, and he calls her Snips once more. While Anakin calling Ahsoka Snips in this episode is undoubtedly a moment of fanservice, as Anakin and Ahsoka’s relationship in The Clone Wars is a definitive favorite amongst audiences, there’s more to it than that, as well.

The last time Ahsoka saw Anakin, she discovered he was Darth Vader. In Star Wars Rebels season 2, episode 19, “Twilight of the Apprentice,” Ahsoka came face to face with Vader at last and was forced to duel with him so her friends could escape the Dark Lord of the Sith. It’s a tragic moment in Star Wars history; Ahsoka was burdened by the feeling that Anakin’s turn to the dark side was a direct result of her abandoning him and the Jedi Order during The Clone Wars, and she wanted to make up for it right then and there. Anakin, of course, was still too far gone at that point – he was Vader through and through.

So, when Ahsoka encounters Anakin again in The World Between Worlds in Ahsoka episode 4, and he calls her Snips, it’s a signal that this truly is Anakin – the version of him that returned when Luke Skywalker redeemed him. The version of him Ahsoka could always count on. Despite everything that had happened since that fateful day Ahsoka walked out on the Jedi Order and left Anakin behind, they are still the same people who cared for one another and learned from one another, and Anakin calling Ahsoka Snips in the Ahsoka show proves it.

Ahsoka releases new episodes Tuesdays at 6pm PT / 9pm ET on Disney+.