Nyota Uhura

Nyota Uhura served as chief communications officer aboard the Starship Enterprise under the command of James T. Kirk for nearly thirty years, after which she continued her career lecturing at Starfleet Academy.

Biography
Uhura, daughter of M'Umbha, was born in the United States of Africa on Earth in 2239. She could speak Swahili fluently. (TOS: "The Man Trap", "The Changeling", "Spectre of the Gun") In her youth, she ran the 100-meter dash in record time. (TAS: "The Slaver Weapon")

The Five-Year Mission
Uhura began her Starfleet career in 2266 as communications officer aboard the USS Enterprise with the rank of lieutenant. (TOS: "The Corbomite Maneuver") In the years following that vessel's historic five-year mission, she proved to be a proficient technician and was considered by Captain Kirk to be a capable and reliable bridge officer, manning the helm station when the need arose. (TOS: "Balance of Terror")


 * Uhura initially wore the gold command uniform in "The Corbomite Maneuver" and "Mudd's Women." Afterwards she was outfitted in the more familiar red uniform of engineering and support services.

On stardate 1704.2, under the influence of polywater intoxication, Hikaru Sulu, fantasizing himself a musketeer, took Uhura, neither fair nor a maiden, under his "protection" before first officer Spock subdued him with a Vulcan nerve pinch. (TOS: "The Naked Time")

Following a communications blackout caused by Apollo, jamming all communication frequencies between the Enterprise and her landing party on stardate 3468.1, Uhura attempted the delicate task of rewiring the entire communications system in an attempt to break through the interference. In conjuction with Lieutenant Sulu's rigging of transmission circuits for maximum power generation, Uhura successfully connected the bypass circuit, a task she had not done in several years. Spock praised her work and could think of "no one better equipped" to handle the necessary repairs. (TOS: "Who Mourns for Adonais?")

Her most traumatic experience during her time aboard the Enterprise occured on stardate 3541.9. Uhura had her memory wiped out by the space probe Nomad when it interpreted her singing as a biological malfunction. Dr. McCoy used advanced medical and educational techniques to restore her memories. (TOS: "The Changeling") The amount of lingering damage from Nomad, if any, was never discussed.

On stardate 4523.3, while on shore leave aboard Deep Space Station K-7, Uhura met a dealer named Cyrano Jones, who tried to sell rare galactic items, among them, funny little creatures Jones called tribbles. In hopes of more sales, Jones gave one to Uhura, which subsequently, due to tribbles' high reproduction rate, threatened to overrun the Enterprise when Uhura took the creature with her on board. Fortunately, the crew found a way to dispose of the tribbles. (TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles")

On stardate 5483.7, the male Enterprise crew was incapacitated by the "siren's song" of Taurus II's female population, requiring Uhura to take command of the ship. She and Nurse Chapel led a landing party to rescue Kirk, Spock and McCoy. (TAS: "The Lorelei Signal") Later that year, on stardate 2291.2, the Enterprise revisited the Shore Leave Planet where Uhura was abducted by the planet's computer which had taken charge upon The Keeper's death. Uhura reasoned with the computer, which felt that it was being taken advantage of, and convinced it to cease its hostile actions against the Enterprise crew. (TAS: "Once Upon a Planet")

In 2270, Uhura again temporarily commanded the bridge when the Enterprise lost contact with Kirk and Spock, half of the ship's contact party, while exploring the surface of Delta Theta III. Per Kirk's orders of avoiding unnecessary risks, she ordered Montgomery Scott and Sulu, the other half of the contact party, aboard the ship, contrary to their attempt to locate the Spock and the captain. (TAS: "Bem")

Later that year, Uhura, along with McCoy and Lieutenant Sulu, became trapped in the ship's holographic recreation room when the Enterprise computer exhibited aberrant behavior following its passage through an energy cloud. (TAS: "The Practical Joker") On stardate 5275.6, Uhura collapsed on the bridge due to the effects of Dramian auroral plague. Fortunately, Dr. McCoy found a cure to rescue her and the rest of the infected crew. (TAS: "Albatross") On stardate 6770.3, upon entering an anti-matter universe, the Enterprise crew experienced the effects of accelerated reverse aging and Uhura was reduced to infancy. After returning the ship to normal space, the crew returned to their normal ages by use of the transporters. ( TAS: "The Counter-Clock Incident")

Later Career
In the 2270s, Uhura was promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander aboard the Enterprise. She served aboard the refit Enterprise' under the command of Willard Decker, and later during the V'Ger'' crisis, under the command of Admiral Kirk. (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)

In 2284, Uhura was promoted to Commander and assigned to Starfleet Command communications and to Starfleet Academy while the Enterprise was reassigned to cadet training. Her duties included lecturing at the Academy. That same year, the Enterprise became involved with Project Genesis and Khan Noonien Singh's attempt to steal the Genesis device. Eventually Kirk stopped Khan, but not before the latter had brought extensive damage upon the Enterprise, requiring Captain Spock to sacrifice his life to save the ship. (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)

In 2285, Uhura was assigned to the transporter room at Old City Station per her own request. During the planned rescue attempt of Spock from the Genesis planet, Uhura played an instrumental role in illegally transporting Admiral Kirk and company to the Enterprise prior to its theft. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock)


 * In the scene featuring Uhura's posting at Old City Station, Uhura is seen wearing a black skirt with her uniform rather than the otherwise standard black slacks worn by other female personnel. This costume design was made at the request of Nichelle Nichols, and honored by costume designer Robert Fletcher especially for that scene.

Kirk and his senior staff succeeded in saving Spock, and Uhura met up with her crewmates on Vulcan. Along with the rest of the crew, she traveled back to the year 1986 aboard a Klingon Bird-of-Prey – which they named the HMS Bounty – to retrieve two humpback whales to save planet Earth from an alien probe. While in 20th century San Francisco, Uhura and Pavel Chekov transported aboard the aircraft carrier Enterprise to acquire high-energy photons from its reactor core. Upon their return to the 23rd century, she was among the crew charged with the theft of the Enterprise. However, all charges against them were dropped because they had saved the planet, and she was reassigned to communications on board the USS Enterprise-A. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)

In 2287, the Enterprise was dispatched to resolve a hostage situation on Nimbus III, the "Planet of Galactic Peace". Under the influence of the rebel leader Sybok, Uhura and many other crewmembers cooperated to divert the Enterprise to the galactic core where Sybok convinced them that they would find the mythical Sha Ka Ree. However, the crew found that the entity which identified itself as "God" sought only to escape imprisonment behind the Great Barrier. The Enterprise destroyed the being when it threatened to kill Kirk, Spock and McCoy. (Star Trek V: The Final Frontier)

Up until the Khitomer crisis of 2293, Uhura continued to serve as communications officer of the Enterprise-A. The Enterprise crew played a vital role in the success of the Khitomer Conference by exposing a conspiracy that sought to sabotage the peace process. By the end of the year, Uhura had left the Enterprise and taken up a position at Starfleet Academy. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

Personal Life
Uhura was well known on the Enterprise for entertaining the crew with her talented singing. She sang "Beyond Antares" on several occasions, in the crew's lounge and even on the bridge – the last incident triggering Nomad's assault. (TOS: "The Conscience of the King", "The Changeling")

Throughout their years of serving together, Uhura developed a strong friendship with other members of the Enterprise senior staff. In 2285, she helped Kirk without hesitation in his quest to find peace for Spock's katra. While the other crew recovered Spock's body from the Genesis Planet, Uhura waited for them on Vulcan, where the fal-tor-pan ritual later restored Spock's soul to his body. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock)

James T. Kirk
Serving under Kirk for many years, Uhura developed a great respect for Kirk, both as a captain and a person. On stardate 5784.2, under the telekinetic influence of the Platonians, Uhura was forced to kiss him. (TOS: "Plato's Stepchildren") ''The kiss between Kirk and Uhura became famous, as it was the first interracial kiss on American television. The scene was viewed as groundbreaking, although the kiss was portrayed as having been forced by alien mind control.''

Spock
On occasion, Uhura was accompanied in singing by Spock on the Vulcan harp, as with the improvised song "Oh, On the Starship Enterprise". (TOS: Charlie X)

On stardate 4372.5, the Enterprise was assigned to transport Elaan, Dohlman of Elas, to the planet Troyius for an arranged marriage to the Troyian leader. Elaan stabbed her tutor Petri and the crew had to teach her lessons in manners before the ceremony. Passing by the recreation room, they heard haunting music coming from within. Uhura suggested to Captain Kirk that music hath charms to soothe the savage beast, and they entered to find Spock playing the Vulcan lyre. Uhura, deeply impressed with Spock's musical abilities, asked if he could teach her how to play the lyre. Spock approved, yet wondered whether a non-Vulcan could ever master the skill. (TOS: "Elaan of Troyius" deleted scene)

Montgomery Scott
In 2287, Uhura showed romantic interest in engineer Montgomery Scott, but they never pursued the relationship. Under Sybok's influence, however, Uhura became more persuasive. Scotty, neverthless, politely declined the advance, mindful of her "condition". (Star Trek V: The Final Frontier)

Name and heritage
Uhura's name was derived from "Uhuru", the Swahili word for "freedom", but the character's given name was never established in the series or movies. In Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, her name was misspelled "Uhuru" in the credits. By the early 1970s, fans had suggested her first name to be "Penda", meaning "love". Later "Nyota" ("star" in Swahili) became commonly used, first by William Rotsler in his book Star Trek II Biographies.

In the FASA Star Trek RPG published in the 1980s, Uhura's personal name was given as "Samara". Like the rest of this game, its source material was stricken from canonical status after the debut of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Paramount Pictures revised canon policies. This possible name appears to not have been accepted beyond the original source. Ironically, in the TNG RPG adaptation, there were several Decker-class starships named for the Enterprise crew, including the USS Samara Uhura.

Uhura's date &amp; location of birth and her mother's name are non-canon. Neither was established on screen, but instead derived from the original Star Trek writer's guide, the Star Trek Concordance, the Star Trek Chronology and the Star Trek Encyclopedia. Her familiarity with Swahili implies (but does not require) an East African origin or heritage. In the novelization of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Chekov said Uhura was from the Bantu Nation.

In the 1977 Writers'/Directors' Guide for Star Trek II – the aborted second series – Uhura was noted as having been born in the "African Confederacy".

Apocrypha
Uhura is depicted in the non-canonical novels The Art of the Impossible, Catalyst of Sorrows, and Vulcan's Soul, Book I: Exodus as later going on to become the head of Starfleet Intelligence in the 24th century, serving into 2377.