Wikitroid:Featured article queue/Month 10, 2010

Zebesians are the most common form of Space Pirates. The true planet from which Zebesians originate is currently unknown; presumably, they are not from the Space Pirate Homeworld as the Metroid Prime Trilogy art booklet states that it is one of several homeworlds. However, series director Yoshio Sakamoto has said that the Pirates took "Zebesian" as a general name for themselves after the conquest of Zebes, comparing it to most "Americans" actually being descended from Europeans and only calling themselves Americans after conquering the true Native American tribes. The Zebesian race is composed of feral, mindless beasts that can only properly function as an intelligent group when united under leadership.

Ridley is said to have been the 'original Zebesian' according to the information in the first game's instruction manual. This has not been mentioned again, even in subsequent retellings of the game's story, and may no longer be canon; however, this may be similar to how ancient Roman generals took the titles of places they conquered, such as Germanicus.