Bolians. Boli-Boli-boli-Bollians. Big, blue, beautiful, bald Bolians. They’re a frequently
seen species in the Star Trek universe in and out of Starfleet uniforms but not much
is really revealed on screen about their society or culture. So that’s what we’ll be looking
at today, hi Ric here and with this index I’ll be drawing on continuity from both
the screen and beyond to create a more fleshed out image of the Bolian people.
Their homeworld is the planet Bolarus in the Bolian Sector of the Alpha Quadrant, near
the Romulan Neutral Zone and the Alpha/Beta boarder. It has also been called Bolias and
is the ninth planet in the system. Therefore it has also been abbreviated to Boliax, likely
from including the roman numerals for “nine” in the pronunciation.
It’s star is a class B, blue star, perhaps explaining their complexion. The planet itself
is a mostly water M class world similar to Earth with three greater continents and many
smaller islands. The atmosphere is frequently racked by storms and the lashing waves have
caused erosion on several landmasses making cliffs a common sight as well as regular tourist
destinations on calmer days. It’s gravitational pull is slightly greater
than Earth’s at 1.1g and it has four moons. The storms would likely prevent too many aerial
establishments so the Bolians have numerous underwater cities encased in domes as well
as those on land. The governing body of the planet is the Quorum
of Bole. A Quorum is the minimum number of individuals in any given assembly needed to
make decisions and to prevent a too much power being wielded by too few. This suggests that
there are many people involved in the governing of the Bolarus, but not all are needed for
every meeting or decision. Bolarus is a Federation member planet as of
the 24th century with several million non-Bolian Federation citizens living on the planet and
frequent visits and involvement in Federation affairs. However not every Bolian colony is
part of the United Federation of Planets, in much the same way as not every human colony
world has to be a Federation one. Therefore, there are many Bolians who, while amiable
towards the Federation, are not citizens. Its science institutions included the Bolian
Academy of Applied Sciences and the Bolian Interstellar Research Institute.
The planet held several other points of interest and importance to the Federation, but the
most well-known location is the Bank of Bolias. This service seems to be a Federation affiliated
financial institution but although money is not present in the every-day UFP citizen’s
life, the bank is therefore likely responsible for the exchange and management of Federation
funds. Probably dealing with many other powers and acting as an exchange .As such, it has
substantial financial sway within the Alpha Quadrant.
Early in their history, they managed to place colonies on two of their moons and were working
on breaking the warp barrier when two warring species, the Iren and Uzor made contact as
their battles spilled into the Bolian system. This caused a brief schism in the Bolians
as their planet was divided on whether or not to aid one side or remain neutral but
in 2127, they managed to attain warp 1 and travel beyond their system under their own
power. The Bolians had met the Ferengi long before any other Federation species too, prior
to the launch of the NX-01 in 2151. There’s some discrepancy in the 23rd century as to
how the Iren-Uzor conflicts ended but its explained that it was due to Federation involvement,
earning the organisation the respect of the Bolian people and beginning their long-time
partnership. By 2256, the Bolians were officers within
Starfleet although it should be noted that this on its own is not evidence of member
status, merely a heightened involvement. By the end of the Dominion War, the Bolian
Min Zife has ascended to Federation presidency following the term of Jaresh-Inyo. Also during
the heights of the Dominion War, much Bolian territory was lost to the Dominion and seemed
to be a major battleground for the “galactic east” side of Federation space. When the
Romulans entered the war, they did a pretty good job regaining substantial portions of
the Bolian systems. In terms of biology, Bolians are one of the
many humanoid species of Star Trek, however they are rather incompatible with a lot of
them. Their blue skin ranges from greenish-hued to deeper shades and they often have mottled
lines around their cranium. Some have been seen to have hair, although this seems to
be a female only trait and even then, many are naturally bald. The most distinctive facial
feature is the cranial ridge of cartilage that runs from the top of their head down
their face, neck and chest and down the back too. Their ears too have larger cartilaginous
lobes. Internally their blood is blue, similar to
that of Andorians suggesting a similar build-up of cobalt in their body chemistry. Their heart
is offset to the right side of the body and it should be noted that blood transfusions
from many other species can be fatal to a Bolian, Vulcan blood in particular. Human-Bolian
relations were also rather awkward as the intimate actions would result in the human
suffering a range of symptoms such as fatigue, fever and inflammation. Of the joints. Not
the… but probably that too. Some have suggested that this may be due to the corrosive nature
of Bolian bodily fluids. Not enough like xenomorph blood, but enough to be an irritant.
The Bolian digestive system was also very robust with them easily being able to process
similar foods to humans, but even those in further states of decay. Meats that had begun
to spoil could quite easily be consumed by a Bolian with no ill effect although and some
dishes even required the food to be rotting before preparation. Needless to say many non-Bolians
find this unpalatable but nonetheless are apparently rather tasty as reported by those
brave enough to try them. Their uh.. excrement apparently is also rather more... caustic
than your typical humanoid. Their society is known for being quite communicative
and even boisterous at times. Your standard Bolian for example is going to be rather more
outgoing, talkative and friendly, easily filling quiet time with banter and small talk and
generally they do enjoy socialising among others. This leads them to gravitate towards
jobs that require face to face interactions such as those in the service industry as well
as educational and diplomatic roles. A common Bolian greeting was a handshake,
but with the palm down and fingers curled instead of the human tradition of vertical
clasping. They tended to gravitate towards brightly coloured clothes and trinkets, matching
their open and hospitable demeanours. Bolian marriage could often be polygamous,
similar perhaps to the Denobulans with several co-wives and co-husbands in a family structure.
Between affectionate Bolians, pressing foreheads and feeling the pulse of the neck was akin
to a lover’s embrace. The Bolian written language appears to be
written as a mixture of curving angles across horizontal lines and appears to have a lot
in common with the emblem for their people. Bolian names tend to be made in pairs and
rather short, often monosyllabic. Male names included Mot, Chell, Rixx, with the slightly
longer Vadosia, Brathaw. Female names included Golwat, Lysia and Mitena. Some of these may
have been surnames as is the case with Adron Broht, Mitena Haro and Hars Adislo. There
were also several names that included apostrophises such as V’Sal and Boq’ta.
Bolian Tech is generally on par with those other worlds in the Federation and they have
contributed towards the fields of anti-grav and dilithium refinement. But they do operate
their own commerce and trade sectors outside of Starfleet. Such freighters frequented outposts
such as Deep Space Nine, far from Bolarus showing the incredible reach the species had,
probably in no small part due to their relations with the Federation. Saying that, they were
often the target of pirates and raids and they also transported supplies for Starfleet.
Bolians are a frequent sight on Starfleet vessels and in the series, but the exact status
of their planet has often been obscured by conflicting sources so the compromise was
to have them as a federation world but one that freely embraces their freedom to build
their own trade connections beyond the UFP. This could be seen as an overall reflection
of the sociable nature of the species, not dedicating themselves to a single entity as
their desire to meet others takes them beyond the Federation. As either workers in various
industries, traders, ambassadors or officers within Starfleet Bolians tend to be eager
to please and hardworking out of a sense of friendly duty. Of course there are outliers,
so not every Bolian is going to be one hundred and ten percent friendly all the time and
they are perfectly capable of being serious when needed.
That’s about everything I could find on the Bolians, with a fair bit of substantial
not-strictly canonical content thrown in to flesh them out. So, what about the next target
of the index series? Votes are over on the community tab and I’m thinking that it’s
been a while since we did anything Star Wars related, so how about another water-world
bound species, either the Quarren who share a home with the Mon Calamari, or perhaps the
Kaminoans Cloners of Kamino. Cast your vote to let me know and until next time, thank
you for watching and I’ll see you later. Goodbye!