Talk:Ululation

Old stuff
A description of how one ululates would be nice. Is it a tongue thing? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 62.90.99.252 (talk • contribs) 06:37, 5 September 2005 (UTC)
 * Can only women ululate? &mdash;preceding unsigned comment by Gil Dawson (talk &bull; contribs) 05:09, 7 December 2005 (UTC)


 * I assume you mean, "are women the only ones allowed to ululate?" I believe it varies from place to place. Among Ethiopians, I've only known women to do it. -- Gyrofrog (talk) 05:28, 7 December 2005 (UTC)
 * In the Arab world, men ululate only jocularly. It is exclusively a feminine mode of expression. Hakeem.gadi (talk) 02:07, 10 July 2008 (UTC)
 * In which case, can we remove the part where it says its only done by women?194.80.32.10 (talk) 20:34, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

Expression of grief?
The article says in the Arab world it is use to express grief. I've never come across this usage. It is only an expression of joy. Can anyone affirm that? Maybe in some parts of the Arab world it used for grief.Hakeem.gadi (talk) 04:11, 29 January 2009 (UTC)
 * According to, women ululate at the funeral of a martyr, in reference to the fact she won't be able to at the wedding of the deceased. (That is kind of like some cultures who bury unmarried girls in wedding dresses -- I've forgotten which ones do that...) LachlanA (talk) 11:22, 1 February 2009 (UTC)
 * I am familiar with this fact, except that it is supposed to be an expression of celebration, because the martyr is going to Heaven (or so they believe). I will remove the reference to 'grief'. Hakeem.gadi (talk) 12:29, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

Alleluia as an 'ululation'?
This may seem far fatched and WP:OR, but, could the word 'hallelujah' ultimately derive from an expression of joy, essentially an 'ululation'?

From the online etymological dictionary:

hallelujah also halleluiah, 1530s, from Hebrew hallalu-yah "praise ye Jehovah," from hallalu, plural imperative of hallel "to praise" also "song of praise," from hillel "he praised," of imitative origin, with primary sense being "to trill." Second element is yah, shortened form of Yahweh, name of God. Replaced variant formation alleluia (12c.).

(perhaps the Arabic word 'halal' has a similar root?)

Any experts out there care to comment? Might be an interesting addition for the article if true.1812ahill (talk) 00:37, 20 September 2012 (UTC)


 * I'm not a Semitist, but the entry from Gesenius found here,, does support the connection, as I understand it, given that it does seem to refer to the custom of ululation in Ethiopia. Fascinating!
 * The root halal is derived from, however, does not have any discernible connection to this. --Florian Blaschke (talk) 22:42, 9 February 2017 (UTC)


 * Even if it's uncertain whether the Semitic root H-L-L is onomatopoeically related to ululation, it would still be consistent with Wikipedia rules to state what linguists have made such speculations, provided that authoritative sources for such statements are available. 77.127.22.50 (talk) 10:13, 7 April 2019 (UTC)


 * Oh, and one more thing. The Arabic "ḥalāl" and the Hebrew "hilel" are unlikely to be etymologically related. The Arabic "ḥalāl" does not include an English-like "h" sound (voiceless glottal fricative). Instead, it has a voiceless pharyngeal fricative (<ħ>). This is a confusion derived from the fact that English lacks the voiceless pharyngeal fricative (<ħ>). However, the Hebrew "hilel" does have a voiceless glottal fricative () rather than a voiceless pharyngeal fricative (<ħ>). Both phonemes exist in both languages, Arabic and Hebrew (Ancient Hebrew and Modern Mizrahi Hebrew) -- specifically as phonemes, not as mere allophones. This is why it's highly unlikely that "ḥalāl" and "hilel" are etymologically related. 77.127.22.50 (talk) 10:25, 7 April 2019 (UTC)

Correction
The articles says Bengalis use ululation during weeding and festivals. Its partially true. Because only Bengali Hindus use ululation. Bengali Muslim community never doing such thing. It should mention in the article. Thank you. fer dous    15:00, 6 January 2019 (UTC)

"La la la la la la" listed at Redirects for discussion
A discussion is taking place to address the redirect La la la la la la. The discussion will occur at Redirects for discussion/Log/2021 March 27 until a consensus is reached, and readers of this page are welcome to contribute to the discussion.  Seventyfiveyears (talk) 14:19, 27 March 2021 (UTC)

Ululation among the Sioux?
In the movie "Dances with Wolves" members of the Sioux tribe ululate when they leave camp to hunt bison (mid movie). Is this a correct depiction of the Sioux, and possibly also other tribes of Native Americans? 95.195.156.80 (talk) 22:36, 8 August 2023 (UTC)