ululu

English

Etymology

Onomatopoeic. Not related to ululate, ululative, or ululation.

Noun

ululu (plural not attested)

1. An auspicious cry uttered by Indian women on festive occasions.
   • 1982, The Orissa Historical Research Journal, page 205:

     The use of Ululu […] as an auspicious sound is not only made by the women of Bengal, but also by the women of Orissa till to-day on festive occasions.

   • 2004, Michael Madhusudan Dutt, The Slaying of Meghanada: A Ramayana from Colonial Bengal, page 228:

     The women Rākṣasa gave out auspicious calls of ululu which, when joined with ululations, rose into the skies.

   • 2012, Hillary Rodrigues, Ritual Worship of the Great Goddess, page 54:

     The women of the household utter a blood-curdling cry, onomatopoeically called the ululu, during the ārati. Bengali women utter this cry during all the high points of the Durga Pfija ritual.

South Efate

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ululu/

Adjective

ululu

1. hairy