Provenance, Concept and Creation

Character Designer Tetsuya Nomura has explained that he adorned Yuna's dress and necklace with images of the hibiscus flower also called "Yuna", and that her name carries the meaning of "moon" in Okinawan, establishing a contrast between her and the lead male protagonist of Final Fantasy X, Tidus, whose name means "sun" in Okinawan. This contrast is also represented in-game by items named for the sun and moon that empower Tidus' and Yuna's most powerful weapons. Nomura has explained that while all these subtle details may be unnecessary, he does not want his designs to have no meaning behind them. Yuna is portrayed with having heterochromia, a condition that gives the subject two different colored eyes.

The basis for Yuna's overall design was that of Okinawan Kimonos, but Nomura has also mentioned that when he learned the character was to perform a dance called "the sending", he wanted to give her outfit something that would flow. For this reason, the specific type of kimono he chose for her was a furisode, a kimono bearing long sleeves.

Both the summoner's duties and the overall design of Yuna's clothing in Final Fantasy X are strongly reminiscent of the customs and dress of Shinto shrine maidens. The item worn on her chest in Final Fantasy X-2 is a reference to Tidus; the symbol, being the ancient emblem of the Zanarkand Abes blitzball team (to which Tidus was star-player), can be found on Tidus' clothing as well as in his home in Zanarkand. Yuna also sports a different hair style which is similar to Tidus' hair style.

During the course of the game, the player discovers that — within the context of the game's world and story — the character was named after Lady Yunalesca by her father, Lord Braska.