Kanna

"water"

- It's been so long since I've had hope. But you brought it back to life, my little Waterbender.

Kanna, also known as Gran Gran, is Katara and Sokka's caring grandmother on their father's side.

Kanna is the oldest person in the Southern Water Tribe but is not a Waterbender. Although she had her doubts about Aang at first, when it was revealed that he was indeed the Avatar, she had regained hope, something she says she hasn't had for a long time. She cares deeply for her two grandchildren.

History
Kanna was actually born in the Northern Water Tribe. When she was still fairly young, it was arranged that she would marry Pakku, a young Waterbender. Following the tribe's engagement tradition, Pakku carved a symbol into a betrothal necklace for her. Though he loved her very much and thought highly of their future together, Kanna did not, apparently due to the Northern Water Tribe's chauvinistic societal standards, to which Pakku himself adhered strongly. Sometime before their wedding, Kanna ran away and headed for the Southern Water Tribe. She didn't even say goodbye to her friends, although she did take the necklace with her, and married an unknown man from the Southern Tribe with whom she bore a son, Hakoda. The necklace was eventually passed down to her daughter-in-law, Kya, who in turn passed it down to Katara. Kanna never told her grandchildren the history of that necklace, nor of her 'past life' in the Northern Water Tribe. Sometime after the Siege of the North she was reunited with Pakku. Her old friend Yugoda claims that Katara is a spitting image of her.



Kanna soon became good friends with Hama, one of the Southern Water Tribe's most skilled Waterbenders. They were present when the Southern Water Tribe was first attacked by the Fire Nation. The Waterbenders tried to fight them off, but were greatly outnumbered. Hama became the last Waterbender in the Southern Water Tribe until she too was captured. When she was taken onto the boat, Kanna was the last face of her friends Hama saw before she was locked away when she was still a young woman.

The years passed, yet the War didn't seem to ease, making Kanna somewhat bitter and cynical. At an unknown date, her son became the Tribal Chief and married a woman named Kya, who eventually bore two children, Sokka and Katara. Katara would later be revealed to be a Waterbender, the first to be born in the Southern Tribe for many years.

Kya would eventually be killed in a Fire Nation raid, leaving her family traumatized, though it is unknown what effect had the murder on Kanna, or what was the exact depth of her relationship with her daughter-in-law.

On the year prior Sozin's Comet return, Kanna's grandchildren discovered a frozen Airbender, Aang. They later brought him back to their village. Like her grandson, Kanna didn't trust the stranger, and eventually saw him as a threat, as he had accidentally triggered a Fire Nation warning system. She was among the people who asked for Aang to leave and persuaded her granddaughter to stay with them, despite Aang being Katara's only chance to go to the North Pole and learn from a true Waterbending master.

Nevertheless, the village was attacked anyway by the Fire Nation and Kanna was directly threatened by Zuko, the banished Crown Prince. They were however saved by Aang, who was revealed to be the Avatar. When Aang later surrendered to protect the villagers and Katara and Sokka decided to go saving him, Kanna allowed them to leave, having finally regained hope with the return of the Avatar. She's never directly seen again.

Master Pakku eventually went to the Southern Water Tribe to reclaim his beloved and carved her a new betrothal necklace; the two were subsequently married. It is unknown if Pakku and Kanna settled after The War in either of the Water Tribes.

Relatives

 * Unknown first husband (deceased)
 * Hakoda (son)
 * Kya (daughter-in-law, deceased)
 * Sokka (elder grandson)
 * Katara (younger granddaughter)
 * Pakku (second husband)
 * Aang (grandson in-law)
 * Tenzin (great-grandson)

Connections
Gran Gran strongly resembles the wise elder women found in many of the works of Hayao Miyazaki – most notably, the Wise Woman who starts Prince Ashitaka on his quest in Princess Mononoke. The series' creators have professed their fandom of Hayao Miyazaki in many interviews.

Name Origin

 * Kanna's name may be derived from the Japanese word Kan, meaning cold.
 * "Kana" is also Inuit for "down there", "the one below", "downriver" or "in the direction of the sea", possibly referring to her traveling from the Northern to Southern Water Tribe.
 * Kanna can mean "river fish".
 * There is a river and lake by the name of Kanna.
 * "Cana", pronounced the same way, means "white hair" in Spanish.
 * In Telugu (Indian Language) Kanna means dear, or child.
 * "Kanna" also means "carry" in Finnish.

Trivia

 * Kanna's nickname in the Spanish version is "Gran Gran Abuela", which translates into great great grandmother. In the French version her nickname his "Mabouba", but the origins of this translation are unknown.
 * Kanna is portrayed by Katharine Houghton in "The Last Airbender".
 * Kanna (Gran Gran) is voiced by Melendy Britt, the voice actress who played She-Ra in the popular "Princess of Power" cartoon series from the 80s.
 * Kanna seems to have kept her same hairstyle, hair loopies, her whole life.
 * Kanna looks very much like Katara when she was younger.