News

Uhura's character on Star Trek: Tos broke barriers for women of color in television, despite lack of first name until 2009. The name Nyota, meaning freedom in Swahili, was adopted for Uhura before it was officially used on screen in 2009 by J.J. Abrams. Modern Star Trek adaptations have developed Uhura into a more complex and complete character with added depth and heroic qualities.

Nichelle Nichols' Lt. Uhura broke barriers on Star Trek: The Original Series, paving the way for women of color on television, but the iconic character did not officially receive a first name until 2009. As the Communications officer on the USS Enterprise under the command of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Uhura was too often reduced to declaring that hailing frequencies were open. Still, she was a young Black woman on the bridge of a starship, which was a major breakthrough in the 1960s. While most of the...

Nichelle Nichols' portrayal of Communications Officer Uhura on Star Trek broke barriers when the show first aired in the 1960s, but the character went without a first name for decades. On a military-style ship like the Enterprise, it was common for characters to be referred to only by their last names, but it seemed as if most major characters had their family and given names revealed in The Original Series. Uhura wasn't the only character to be without a first name for a long time, but hers was one of the series' most glaring oversights considering how many episodes she appeared in prominently.

Her first name was adopted from the Swahili word "Uhuru" which meant freedom, and in many ways, her character exemplified that when appearing in the racially diverse show in 1966. Uhura's most important episodes put the empowering young officer at the forefront of the story, and it was...