ULULATING

A new word for today...

ululate: to howl, wail or lament loudly; to emit long, loud cries

I have done it. Thankfully, not often. But, I don't know this word. I like this word. It should be an onomatopoeia, but unfortunately it is not. It stills sounds lovely, almost celebratory, but it is the opposite.

Whoops! That's two words for today... I knew this one, but the spelling would have stumped me.

onomatopoeia: word or grouping of words that imitates the sound it is describing

My first remembered brush with ululations came today when I discovered the blog of a 25-year old Algerian woman living in southeast Michigan writing about missing her home.

http://thym-thym.blogspot.com/2008_10_01_archive.html

I missed births, wedding ululations, birthdays, new years and harvests. I miss the beach, the street food stands, the smells, the noisy neighbors, the nosy neighbors, the crowded market, the loud streets, the narrow streets, and the wobbly streets.I miss it all. The good and the not so good.

I wonder how she makes wedding modify ululations? I think there just a missing comma and dululations in this context refers to funerals.(?) I live in a cultural vacuum, and so I will visit Warda's blog, 64 sq ft kitchen, and learn about her life and experiences.