ululation

noun

Etymology: ] Borrowed from Latin ululātiō, from ululō (“to howl, shriek, yell”) (from a reduplicated Proto-Indo-European imitative root) + -ātiō (suffix forming nouns relating to some action or the result of an action) (from Proto-Indo-European *-tis (suffix forming abstract or action nouns from verb roots)). By surface analysis, ululate + -ion.

1. The act of ululating; a long, loud, wavering cry or howl.

   “The overthrown Martian set up a prolonged ululation, and immediately a second glittering giant, answering him, appeared over the trees[.]”

   “As we started there broke from the thick silent woods behind us a sudden great ululation of the ape-men, which may have been a cheer of triumph at our departure or a jeer of contempt at our flight.”