A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, but when?

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…

That infamous phrase pops up before the start of every Star Wars movie. Yet, through the years of the franchise, it’s never been explicitly stated exactly how long ago the series takes place.

However, there is one small piece of information from Star Wars Legends, which is the original expanded universe before Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm, which points to a timeframe. Though this information is considered non-canon even to Legends, it’s still fascinating that it gives the Star Wars universe a timeline in relation to the real world.

In the Star Wars universe, the timeline is established in relation to the Battle of Yavin. The Battle of Yavin is the infamous battle seen at the end of the original film that depicts the Rebel Alliance fighting against the Empire, ending with the destruction of the first Death Star. Each piece of the franchise takes place in a year before the Battle of Yavin (BBY) or in a year after the Battle of Yavin (ABY)

According to the Star Wars wiki Wookipedia, Dr. Indiana Jones (the famous archaeologist with his own famous series, played of course by Harrison Ford) was born between 120 and 130 ABY. He also, hilariously, is said to bear “an uncanny resemblance” to Han Solo (gosh, I wonder why). And according to the Indiana Jones wiki, Dr. Jones was born July 1, 1899.

For argument’s sake, we’ll say Indy was born in 130 ABY in the Star Wars timeline. That would mean 1899, translated to the Star Wars timeline, took place 130 years after the Battle of Yavin. That would mean 2018 is 249 ABY in relation to the Star Wars timeline. So, in the real world, the Battle of Yavin took place 249 years ago.

Here is a look at when all of movies and TV series took place in the real world, based on their setting in the Star Wars timeline.

• The Phantom Menace (32 BBY): 1737
• Attack of the Clones (22 BBY): 1747
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars (22 BBY – 19 BBY): 1747 to 1750
• Revenge of the Sith (19 BBY): 1750
• Solo (13 BBY and 10 BBY): 1756 and 1759
• Star Wars Rebels: (5 BBY – 0 BBY): 1764 to 1769
• Rogue One: (16 BBY and 0 BBY): 1753 and 1769
• A New Hope: (0 BBY): 1769
• The Empire Strikes Back (3 ABY): 1772
• Return of the Jedi (4 ABY): 1773
• The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi (34 ABY): 1803

 What’s probably most fascinating is that the majority of the series took place (in the real world) before the United States declared its independence from Great Britain in 1776. And for context, The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi took place when Thomas Jefferson was President of the United States.

So, while certainly taking place in a galaxy far, far away, Star Wars took place not so long ago.