Ferengi

Culture

Ferengi culture is depicted, especially on Deep Space Nine, as focused on the acquisition of profit as the highest goal. Many episodes portray this as taken to a comical extreme, as, for example, Ferengi prayer involves paying bribes to the gods, and Ferengi funeral rites involve auctioning off the deceased's remains. Ferengi characters frequently quote the "Rules of Acquisition", a collection of proverbs that are said to govern Ferengi business practices (such as "Never place friendship above profit"[14] a compilation of these Rules was published by Deep Space Nine showrunner Ira Steven Behr. Ferengi culture is also portrayed as extremely sexist; in early seasons of Deep Space Nine, Ferengi females are not permitted to earn profit, travel, or even wear clothing. A long-running plot thread on DS9 features Ferengi society's gradual evolution away from these practices, especially as Quark's mother Ishka establishes herself as a respected businesswoman and financial advisor.

Biology and appearance

A cosplayer dressed as a Ferengi (left) with another dressed as a Bajoran The Ferengi were first designed by Andrew Probert and later refined and produced by Michael Westmore.[15] The most prominent feature in Ferengi design is their large ear lobes. Ferengi experience sexual stimulation when their lobes are rubbed — an act called "oo-mox".[15] Ferengi females allegedly have smaller lobes, but the only female Ferengi characters shown in the series were Pel and Ishka. Betazoids are incapable of reading Ferengi emotions.[15]

Planet

The Ferengi home, the planet Ferenginar is introduced in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Family Business".[16] The planet's climate is shown to be almost constantly rainy.

Spacecraft

A Ferengi shuttlecraft was introduced in the episode "The Price".[17] It was also seen in "Little Green Men" as a spacecraft used by Quark.[18] The studio model for VFX was auctioned by Christie's for over US$8,000 in 2006.[18] There is a larger Ferengi spaceship called the Marauder.[19] The Marauder was designed by Andrew Probert, and the model was built by Greg Jein; the studio model was constructed of resin, fiberglass, and aluminum

Related Organizations