Jorus Trass was a Jedi Knight during the time of the Old Republic. A Jedi Linguist, Trass was chief linguist at the Jedi Academy on Almas in the Cularin System. Among other endeavors, Trass, other Jedi Masters, and other linguists throughout the galaxy took up the task of studying the Tarasin Skintone Language.

This complex form of communication was one of the most beautiful in existance. With this method, the Tarasin express their emotions and feelings, as well as thoughts and ideas through a system of skin color changes. Jorus and other such scientists took the time to decipher and detail the intricacies of the language and published them in a document entitled, 'Shades of Meaning.'