Pureblood

Pureblood is a term referring to the child of two asaris. The negatively charged, even offensive, term derives from the peculiar mating ritual of the asari. The asari are mono-gendered and there are therefore no male nor female asaris. But even so, they need a partner in order to reproduce. The second parent however, can be of any gender or of any species since the joining is mental rather than physical.

According to old asari tradition, mating with another species gives more understanding and knowledge of that perticular species and their history and experiences. Therefore, mating with other species is the preferred option since it has an evolving effect on the offspring and also on the race itself. The term pureblood is considered an insult among asaris since the child of two other asaris has not recieved the knowledge or experience of another species, hence, it has not evolved in the same way.

Liara T'Soni talks about herself as a possible pureblood in a dialouge with Shepard. She mentions that her mother, Matriarch Benezia, never mentioned who her father was. This, she took as a sign of her father being another asari, something that Benezia would have preferred to keep secret to avoid the public humiliation.