Why/How is Boba Fett considered a Mandalorian?

Question

Okay, so I'm asking this purely in regards to the new Disney canon.

From Episode II, we learn that Boba Fett is an unaltered clone of Jango Fett. Then, in Star Wars: The Clone Wars we see kid Boba a few times and he's hanging out with several of the more regular bounty hunter characters. It seems like an obvious way for Boba to follow in his father's footsteps without having his father there to teach him. Then fast forward to the next set of canon things we see him in, and he's working for Jabba and sporting his nice Mandalorian Armor.

His armor is of course very similar to his father's armor. It's really just a recoloring of it. Maybe Boba just kept his father's armor and restored it for his own use.

However, we visit the planet Mandalore in the Clone Wars series several times. We see that in stark contrast from the Mandalorians we know from (now non-canon) sources like Knights of the Old Republic, the Mandalorians are pacifists except for one group known as Death Watch. All of the members of Death Watch don armor that looks strikingly similar to the preferred choice of protection by our two favorite bounty hunters.

My question is very simple. What's going on? What's the connection between Jango Fett and Boba Fett to the Mandalorians during the Clone Wars? Is Jango Fett from Mandalore? It seems like a very strange oversight for the writers of the series to include multiple episodes about both Boba Fett and Mandalore and never draw a connection.

Answer 1

DisnEU answer: While Jango Fett wore the armor of a Mandalorian he was not considered to be one by the government of the planet of Mandalore. He merely took their name and armor to appear more fearsome.

Obi-Wan Kenobi: I recently encountered a man who wore Mandalorian armor: Jango Fett.

Alemc: [angrily] Jango Fett was a common bounty hunter. How he acquired that armor is beyond me.

_{—Star Wars: The Clone Wars, "The Mandalore Plot"}

Legends answer: Jango Fett was born on the world of Concord Dawn in 66 BBY, a world in the Mandalore sector and tied to the world of Mandalore. Here he became part of the Mandalorian Civil War that cost Fett his parents at the hands of the Death Watch. After killing the man who murdered his parents Fett was named a true Mandalorian and adopted by the Mand'alor Jaster Mereel.

Being a Mandalorian isn't about being born on the planet Mandalore. It's a way of life, a code and an ideal. This is embodied by the Six Actions, the Resol'nare:

• Ba'jur: Raise your children as Mandalorians.
• Beskar'gam: Wear the armor of a Mandalorian.
• Ara'nov: Defend yourself and your family.
• Aliit: Contribute to the welfare of the clan.
• Mando'a: Speak the Mandalorian Language.
• Mand'alor: When called upon by Mand'alor, rally to his cause.

Or in a children's rhyme:

Ba'jur bal beskar'gam, Ara'nov, aliit, Mando'a bal Mand'alor — An vencuyan mhi.

(Education and armor, Self-defense, our tribe, Our language and our leader — All help us survive.)

By following these tenets, loyalty to the clan and bravery in battle one satisfies the laws of the Canons of Honor and one gains honor. Note that being born a Mandalorian does not make one a Mandalorian: they were dar'manda, ignorant of their heritage. All those who swore to the Resol'nare and lived up to its ideals became Mandalorians, including prisoners who were forcefully induced into the culture.

Though over the years the adhesion to the Resol'nare waned, still the Mandalorians remained a warrior culture, frequently clashing with the Galactic Republic. Eventually the Republic got fed up with them and bombed the Mandalorians into submission. After this the New Mandalorians, a pacifistic group, began to rise and became the predorminant group on Mandalore. The peace held from about 738 BBY until 20 BBY, when the Death Watch took over after a coup, the events of which are detailed in the Clone Wars TV series.

Answer 2

Disney Canon

There's actually very little in this canon linking them to Mandalore other than their armor. In fact, as of right now, the only thing establishing them as being Mandalorian is the card back for Jango's figure from the Star Wars: Rebels toy line.

The ruthless Mandalorian warrior and resourceful bounty hunter Jango Fett fights the Jedi on the planet Geonosis.

The disconnection is largely an artifact of the canon purge.

Previous EU/Legends Canon

This is where the Mandalorian connection was originally established and fleshed out.

The comic series Jango Fett: Open Seasons establishes that Fett was born and raised in the Mandalorian sector.

While Boba Fett was not born or raised there, he would later join the Mandalorian Clan and become their leader, The Mandalore, allowing him to call himself a "Mandalorian".

Answer 3

According to The Mandalorian S02E06, Chapter 14: The Tragedy, Jango Fett was a Mandalorian by creed as he was a foundling. This then makes Boba Fett a Mandalorian by lineage.

[Boba Fett] I want you to take a look at something. My chain code has been encoded in this armor for 25 years. This is me Boba Fett. This is my father Jango Fett.

[Din Djarin] Your father was a foundling?

[Boba] Yes. He even fought in the Mandalorian Civil Wars.

[Din] Then that armor belongs to you.