The World of Avatar plays host to a vast variety of occupations and careers, most notably in the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation. Most occupations are directly associated with the fulfillment of civilian needs, along with the variables of one's social class and wealth. Certain institutions, such as the Ba Sing Se University, specialize in the training and preparation of citizens to handle and develop certain skills to be put to use in a more specialized profession.
Air Nomads
Sister Iio allowed young monks to choose their flying bison.
Based on what is known about the Air Nomad culture, there does not seem to be a large diversity of occupations offered. The only known careers that were pursued by the nomads include:
- Airbending instructor - Teacher that tutors young airbenders in the mastery of their native bending art.
- Flying bison trainer - Caretaker of flying bison before they are adopted by young Air Nomad children.
- Member of the Council of Elders - Leaders of the Air Nomads that manage the government system.[1]
- Monk - Male who dedicates his life to religious teachings.
- Nun - Female who dedicates her life to religious teachings.
Water Tribe
Occupations pursued by the people of the Water Tribe seem to vary depending whether citizens reside in the Northern Water Tribe or Southern Water Tribe.
Southern Water Tribe
Occupations offered here lie mainly in the defense and survival in the South Pole:
- Cook - One who prepares food for tribe members.
- Carnival barker - Responsible for running game booths during the Glacier Spirits Festival.
- Fisherman - Hunter that fishes for food.
- Hunter - One who pursues and kills animals for food.
- Tribal chief - Leader of a Water Tribe settlement.[2]
- Warrior - One who protects and defends the tribe.
- Washer - One who washes clothes.
Northern Water Tribe
Northern Water Tribe warriors defended the capital during the Siege of the North.
- Astronomer - A scientist who studies the celestial bodies.
- Canal worker - One who operates the canal leading in and out of city.
- Chief's adviser - Official who aids the Tribal Chief in making decisions.
- Cook - One who prepares food for tribe members.
- Fisherman - Hunter that fishes for food.
- Gondolier - Boatman who propels a gondola.
- Healer - One who uses waterbending skills for healing purposes.[2]
- Healing instructor - One who teaches waterbenders how to properly employ their healing abilities.[2]
- Hunter - One who kills animals for food.
- Merchants - One who deals with trade and commodities in order to produce profit.
- Musician - One who plays a musical instrument for a living.
- Royal servant - Person who serves and fulfills the needs of the royal family.
- Tribal chief - Leader of a Water Tribe settlement.[2]
- Tribal Princess - Daughter of the Tribal Chief.[2]
- Warrior - Fighter who protects and defends the tribe.
- Waterbending instructor - Teacher that tutors pupils in the mastery of waterbending.
Earth Kingdom
There is a wide range of occupations that are practiced and developed in the Earth Kingdom:
- Architect - Person who plans, designs and participates in the construction of buildings.
- Artist - Creates, practices and demonstrates skill in different fields of art. Examples include painters, sculptors, dancers, actors, etc.
- Assistant - Person that assists another person in accomplishing his or her goals.
- Astrologer - Person who studies the positions of celestial bodies and related topics. They provide information about people.
- Attendant of the Omashu delivery system - One who manages earth boxes used for postal services within the city of Omashu.[3]
- Bartender/Barman - One who serves beverages behind a bar or tavern.[4]
- Bounty hunter - One who captures fugitives for a monetary reward.[5]
The cabbage merchant sold his cabbages throughout the Earth Kingdom.
- Cabbage merchant - One who sells cabbages.[3]
- Canyon guide - One who guides people across the Great Divide.[6]
- Cook - One who prepares food for consumption.
- Dai Li - Previously, a protector of the cultural heritage of Ba Sing Se; the organization may have been disbanded after the coup.[7][8][9]
- Earthbending instructor - Teacher that tutors students in mastery of the art of earthbending.
- Earth monarch - Political figure that governs the Earth Kingdom.[10]
- Earth Rumble VI competitor - Earthbending wrestler who fights for public entertainment.[11]
- Earth Rumble VI host - One who promotes and hosts the championship.[11]
- Entrepreneur - Person who has possession of an enterprise, or venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome.
- Farmer - Cultivator of living organisms for food or raw materials.
- Fisherman - Hunter who gathers shellfish, or captures fish and other animals from a body of water.
- Fortuneteller - Person who predicts the future.[12]
- General - Military figure who directs the military forces of the Earth Kingdom.
- Geographer - One who studies geography, the Earth's physical environment and human habitat.
- Member of Terra Team - Soldier that protects Ba Sing Se.[13]
- Government official - Political figure that assists in the running of the government.[14]
- Grand Secretariat of Ba Sing Se - Political figure that leads the government of Ba Sing Se.[8]
- Graphic designer - Person dedicated to the graphic design and graphic arts industry.
- Haiku master-member of the Five-Seven-Five Society - One who passes the knowledge of haiku to the young women of Ba Sing Se.[15]
- Head of the Dai Li - Leader that directs the Dai Li.
- Herbalist - Person dedicated to the economic or medicinal uses of plants.[2]
- Historian - One who studies and writes about history.
- King of Omashu - Political figure that governs the city of Omashu.[3]
- Kyoshi Warrior - Member of an elite that defends Kyoshi Island and the Earth Kingdom.[16]
The Kyoshi Warriors are the highly trained fighting force of Kyoshi Island.
- Librarian - Person who is a specialist in library work.
- Machine builder - Engineer who builds and repairs machines.
- Masseur/Masseuse - Person skilled in the art of massages. This can be studied at the Spa University.[15]
- Mathematician - Person who studies quantity, structure, space, change and related topics of pattern and form.
- Mechanist-inventor-engineer - One who develops economical and safe solutions to practical problems using science and technology.[17]
- Member of the Council of Five - One who directs the Military of the Earth Kingdom.[18]
- Merchant - One who deals with trade and commodities in order to produce profit.
- Metalbending instructor - Teacher that tutors students in mastery of the art of metalbending.
- Miner - Person who extracts minerals for the kingdom.
- Monk - Male who dedicates his life to religious teachings.[19]
- Monorail driver - One who drives the monorail using earthbending.
- Monorail ticket checker - Attendant who stamps tickets for people boarding the Ba Sing Se Monorail.[13]
- Musician - Person who plays or writes music.
- Nun - Female person dedicated to religion.[5]
- Nurse - One who attends and cures to sick people.[20]
- Passport attendant - Person responsible for validating passports for refugees.[21]
- Pirate - Person dedicated to robbery or criminal violence committed at sea.
- Playwright - Writer of plays; a dramatist.[22]
- Potter - A type of artisan that makes pottery.[3]
- Prison guard - One who supervises prisoners in a prison or jail.
- Professor - One who specializes in an educational subject and teaches it at a college or university such as Ba Sing Se University.
- Royal Earthbender Guard - One who protects the earth monarch.
- Royal messenger - One who delivers messages to the Earth King.[18]
- Royal servant - Person who serves and fulfills the needs of the Earth King.
- Scientist - Acquires some types of knowledge based on a scientific method.
- Spa attendant - Someone who works at a spa like the Fancy Lady Day Spa.[15]
- Student - Person who learns about a specific theme and studies at a university or school.[15]
- Supreme Bureaucratic Administrator - Person who controls each and every bureaucratic aspect of the Earth Kingdom, possibly a defunct position after the liberation of Ba Sing Se.
Kenji owned a zoo in Ba Sing Se.
- Tea shop owner - One who owns and runs a tea shop.[8]
- Teacher - Person who educates others.
- Thief - Person who illegally steals valuable objects or another person's property.
- Tour guide - One who guides and shows a city to tourists.
- Warden - One who protects and directs a prison.
- Warrior - Fighter that protects and defends the Earth Kingdom.
- Zookeeper - Manager who looks after the Ba Sing Se Zoo.[15]
- Zoologist - One who studies animals.
Fire Nation
Many different occupations are developed in the Fire Nation:
- Actor - One who performs in plays, such as The Boy in the Iceberg.[22]
- Admiral - Military figure who directs the naval forces of the Fire Nation.
- Architect - Person who plans and designs buildings. Participates in its construction.
- Captain - Military figure that serves under Commanders in the Fire Nation Navy, controls and directs a ship.
- Circus acrobat - Person who performs difficult feats of balance, agility and motor coordination.[23]
- Circus trainer - Person who trains animals of a circus.[24]
Circus trainers in the Fire Nation wear colorful attire.
- Commander - Military figure that serves under Admirals in the Fire Navy, controls and directs several ships/naval base etc.
- Cook - Person that prepares food for consumption.
- Engineer - One who operates and mends machinery.
- Farmer - Cultivator of living organisms for food or raw materials.
- Ferryman - One who maintains or attends a ferry.
- Firebending instructor - Teacher who instructs students in mastering the art of firebending.
- Fire Lord - Political leader that rules and governs the Fire Nation.
- Fire Sage - Leader of the Fire Nation and servant to the Avatar and the Fire Lord. Religious authority of the Fire Nation who keeps the nation's history.[25]
- Fisherman - Hunter that gathers shellfish, or captures fish and other animals from a body of water.
- General - Military figure that directs the military forces of the Fire Nation.
- Graphic designer - Person dedicated to the graphic design and graphic arts industry.
- Great Sage - Leader of the Fire Sages, crowns the next Fire Lord.[25]
- Headmaster - Leader of the Fire Nation school.[26]
- Hitman - Person hired to assassinate a specific target.[26]
- Innkeeper - One who owns or manages an inn or hotel.[27]
- Lieutenant - Military rank below Captain.
- Magician - Person who creates illusions of impossible or supernatural feats.[28]
- Merchant - One who deals with trade, dealing in commodities in order to produce profit.
- Military messenger - Delivers classified messages to Fire Nation nobility.[29]
- Mine worker - One who extracts minerals for the kingdom.
- Music teacher - Teacher of music to students.[26]
- Personal assistant - Assistant to an important figure such as an admiral.
- Political adviser - Person who advises someone for political reasons. Advises the Royal Family.
- Prison guard - Supervisor of prisoners in a prison or jailhouse.[30][31]
Royal servants tend to the Fire Nation Royal Family's every need.
- Rough Rhino - Member of a special task group. Protects and serves the Fire Nation.[4][14]
- Royal Guard - Protector of the Fire Nation Royal Family.[32][33][34]
- Royal servants - Servant to the Royal Family.
- Scammer - Someone who obtains money by fraud.[35]
- Shopkeeper - Owner and/or manager of a shop.
- Southern Raider - Raider of the Southern Water Tribe when deemed necessary by the Fire Nation military. Member of a special naval task force.[36]
- Student - Person who learns about a specific theme and studies at a university or school.
- Sword instructor - Teacher of people on the handling of the sword.[37]
- Tax collector - Collector of taxes from inhabitants in occupied Fire Nation territory.[30]
- Teacher - Person who educates others.[26]
- Trebuchet operators - One who operates trebuchets.[38]
- Warden - Protector and director of a prison.[30][31]
- Warrior - Protector and defender the Fire Nation.
- War Minister - Overseer of the creation or acquisition of any new Fire Nation military technology.[17]
- Yuyan Archers - Skilled archers who protect, defend and serve the Fire Nation as security guards.[39]
United Republic of Nations
A defense attorney defended Yakone during his trial for bloodbending.
- Attorney - Person appointed to act for another in business or legal matters.[40]
- Businessperson - Person who works in business.[41]
- Chief of Police - The head of the police force.[42]
- Councilperson - A member of the now-dissolved United Republic Council who represented one of the four nations and helped govern Republic City.
- Council page - A servant to the United Republic Council.[43]
- Factory worker - One who works in a factory, such as Future Industries.
- Fire-fighter - Responsible for putting out fires.[44]
- Gang leader - Leader of a gang.
- Gangster - Member of an organized group of criminals.
- Medic - A waterbender employed in the healing of others.[40]
- Midwife - Assists in the process of childbirth.[45]
- News broadcaster - A person who announces news over the airwaves.
- Police officer - Member of the elite law enforcement team of Republic City.[42]
- Phonograph vendor - Person who sells phonographs.[42]
- Park officer - Official who holds up laws at Avatar Korra Park.[42]
- Photographer - Person whose profession is taking photographs.
- Police Captain - Second in command on the police force.
- Power plant worker - Firebender who provides a power source for Republic City with lightning generation.[46]
- President - Democratically elected leader of the United Republic of Nations.[47]
- Pro-bender - Bender who competes in the pro-bending league.
- Pro-bending administrator - Owner of Republic City's Pro-bending Arena, and director of the pro-bending league.[46]
Shiro Shinobi is a pro-bending announcer.
- Pro-bending announcer - Provides commentary on pro-bending matches through the radio in Republic City.[48]
- Pro-bending gym manager - Person who manages the gym at the Pro-bending Arena in Republic City.[48]
- Pro-bending referee - Enforces the rules of pro-bending at the Pro-bending Arena in Republic City.[48]
- Protester - Promotes the Equalist movement.[42]
- Restaurant owner - The proprietor of a business that sells food.
- Reporter - Person who is employed to gather and report news.
- Shipyard worker - A person who unloads cargo from docked ships.
- Spider rat exterminator - Person that specializes in removing spider rat infestations.
- Waiter - Person who goes to tables in a restaurant and asks people for their orders and also brings them their food. At Kwong's Cuisine, they also function as outfitters that dress people with fancy clothing.
- Window cleaner - Person who cleans the outsides of windows and other glass structures.
Four nations
A guru integrates himself with nature.
Occupations with neutral characteristics are diverse in the World of Avatar:
- Avatar - The spirit of the planet incarnated in human form and master of all four bending arts.[49] The Avatar keeps balance among the four nations of the world.
- Guru - Spiritual expert.[24]
- Member of the Order of the White Lotus - Sharer of knowledge and philosophy.[4]
- Nomad - Member of a community of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling down in one location.
- Storyteller - Earns his pay from wanderers in exchange for entertaining tales.[17] Likely travels to wherever nomads often pass.