Editing Onomatopoeia

{{Short description|Words that imitate the sound they describe}}
{{about|the category of words|other uses|Onomatopoeia (disambiguation)}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2020}}
[[File:Clocks no tic tac.JPG|thumb|right|A sign in a shop window in [[Italy]] proclaims these silent clocks make "No ''Tic Tac''", in imitation of the sound of a clock.]]

'''Onomatopoeia''' (or rarely '''echoism''')<ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of ECHOISM |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/echoism |access-date=2024-01-09 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}</ref> is a type of word, or the process of creating a word, that [[phonetics|phonetically]] imitates, resembles, or suggests the sound that it describes. Common onomatopoeias in English include animal noises such as [[Oink (sound)|''oink'']], ''[[meow]]'', ''[[roar]]'', and ''[[Bird vocalization|chirp]]'', among other sounds such as ''[[Beep (sound)|beep]]'' or ''[[hiccup]]''.

Onomatopoeia can differ by language: it conforms to some extent to the broader [[natural language|linguistic]] system.<ref>[http://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0&type=summary&url=/journals/new_literary_history/v027/27.3bredin.html Onomatopoeia as a Figure and a Linguistic Principle], Hugh Bredin, The Johns Hopkins University, Retrieved November 14, 2013</ref><ref>[http://literarydevices.net/onomatopoeia/ Definition of Onomatopoeia], Retrieved November 14, 2013</ref> Hence, the sound of a clock may be expressed variously across languages: as ''{{Lang|en|tick tock}}'' in [[English language|English]], {{Lang|es|tic tac}} in [[Spanish language|Spanish]] and [[Italian language|Italian]] (see photo),  {{Lang|zh|dī dā}} in [[Standard Chinese|Mandarin]], {{Lang|ja|kachi kachi}} in [[Japanese language|Japanese]], or {{Lang|hi|ṭik-ṭik}} in [[Hindi]], [[Urdu]], and [[Bengali language|Bengali]].

==Etymology and terminology==
The word ''onomatopoeia'', with rarer spelling variants like ''onomatopeia'' and ''onomatopœia'', is an English word from the [[Ancient Greek language|Ancient Greek]] compound  ὀνοματοποιία, ''onomatopoiía'', meaning 'name-making', composed of ὄνομα, ''ónoma'', meaning "name";<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3Do%29%2Fnoma ὄνομα], Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', on Perseus</ref> and ποιέω, ''poiéō'', meaning "making".<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3Dpoie%2Fw ποιέω], Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', on Perseus</ref><ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3Do%29nomatopoii%2Fa ὀνοματοποιία], Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', on Perseus</ref> It is pronounced {{IPAc-en|audio=en-us-onomatopoeia.ogg|ˌ|ɒ|n|ə|m|æ|t|ə|ˈ|p|iː|ə|,_|-|m|ɑː|t|-}}.<ref>{{citation |last=Wells |first=John C. |year=2008 |title=Longman Pronunciation Dictionary |edition=3rd |publisher=Longman |isbn=978-1-4058-8118-0}}</ref><ref>{{citation |last=Roach |first=Peter |year=2011 |title=Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary |edition=18th |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-15253-2}}</ref> Words that imitate sounds can thus be said to be '''onomatopoeic''',<!-- Bold per MOS:BOLDSYN --> '''onomatopoetic''',<ref>[https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/onomatopoeia ''onomatopoeia'']. 'Merriam-webster''. Retrieved 12 December 2021.</ref> '''imitative''',<ref>[https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/imitative ''imitative'']. ''Merriam-webster''. Retrieved 20 May 2024.</ref> or '''echoic'''.

== Uses ==
{{Further|List of animal sounds}}
[[File:Kircher-musurgia-bird-song, chicken.jpg|thumb|According to ''[[Musurgia Universalis]]'' (1650), the hen makes "to to too", while chicks make "glo glo glo".]]
[[File:Noveltyitems.JPG|thumb|A bang flag gun, a [[novelty item]]]]

In the case of a frog croaking, the spelling may vary because different frog species around the world make different sounds: [[Ancient Greek]] {{Lang|grc|brekekekex koax koax}} (only in [[Aristophanes]]' comic play ''[[The Frogs]]'') probably for [[marsh frog]]s; English ''[[wikt:ribbit|ribbit]]'' for species of frog found in North America; English verb ''[[wikt:croak|croak]]'' for the [[common frog]].<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/2000/5/00.05.11.x.html |title=Basic Reading of Sound Words-Onomatopoeia |publisher=Yale University |access-date=October 11, 2013}}</ref>

Some other very common English-language examples are ''[[hiccup]]'', ''zoom'', ''bang'', ''[[Beep (sound)|beep]]'', ''moo'', and ''splash''. Machines and their sounds are also often described with onomatopoeia: ''honk'' or ''beep-beep'' for the horn of an automobile, and ''vroom'' or ''brum'' for the internal combustion engine. In speaking of a mishap involving an audible [[electric arc|arcing]] of electricity, the word ''zap'' is often used (and its use has been extended to describe non-auditory effects of interference).

Human sounds sometimes provide instances of onomatopoeia, as when ''[[mwah]]'' is used to represent a kiss.<ref name="mwah_ocford">{{cite web| url = https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/mwah| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161229171106/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/mwah| url-status = dead| archive-date = December 29, 2016| title = English Oxford Living Dictionaries}}</ref>

For animal sounds, words like ''[[Quack (sound)#Communication|quack]]'' (duck), ''moo'' (cow), ''[[Bark (utterance)|bark]]'' or ''woof'' (dog), ''[[Roar (utterance)|roar]]'' (lion), ''[[meow]]''/''[[miaow]]'' or ''[[purr]]'' (cat), ''cluck'' (chicken) and ''baa'' (sheep) are typically used in English (both as nouns and as verbs).

Some languages flexibly integrate onomatopoeic words into their structure. This may evolve into a new word, up to the point that the process is no longer recognized as onomatopoeia. One example is the English word ''bleat'' for sheep noise: in [[medieval]] times it was pronounced approximately as ''blairt'' (but without an R-component), or ''blet'' with the vowel drawled, which more closely resembles a sheep noise than the modern pronunciation.

An example of the opposite case is ''[[cuckoo]]'', which, due to continuous familiarity with the bird noise down the centuries, has kept approximately the same pronunciation as in [[Old English language|Anglo-Saxon]] times and its vowels have not changed as they have in the word ''furrow''.

''[[Verbum dicendi|Verba dicendi]]'' ('words of saying') are a method of integrating onomatopoeic words and [[ideophone]]s into grammar.

Sometimes, things are named from the sounds they make. In English, for example, there is the universal fastener which is named for the sound it makes: the [[zipper|zip]] (in the UK) or [[zipper]] (in the U.S.) Many birds are named after their calls, such as the [[bobwhite quail]], the [[weero]], the [[morepork]], the [[killdeer]], [[chickadee]]s and [[jay]]s, the [[common cuckoo|cuckoo]], the [[common chiffchaff|chiffchaff]], the [[whooping crane]], the [[whip-poor-will]], and the [[kookaburra]]. In [[Tamil language|Tamil]] and [[Malayalam]], the word for [[crow]] is {{Lang|ml|kākā}}. This practice is especially common in certain languages such as [[Māori language|Māori]], and so in names of animals borrowed from these languages.

=== Cross-cultural differences ===
Although a particular sound is heard similarly by people of different cultures, it is often expressed through the use of different phonetic strings in different languages. For example, the "''snip''"of a pair of scissors is ''{{lang|it|cri-cri}}'' in [[Italian language|Italian]],<ref name="Andersen 1998">{{cite book |last1=Anderson |first1=Earl R. |title=A Grammar of Iconism |date=1998 |publisher=Fairleigh Dickinson University Press |isbn=9780838637647 |page=112 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2v1hv6oL9moC&pg=PA112}}</ref> ''{{lang|es|riqui-riqui}}'' in [[Spanish language|Spanish]],<ref name="Andersen 1998" /> ''{{lang|pt|terre-terre}}''<ref name="Andersen 1998" /> or ''{{lang|pt|treque-treque}}''{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}} in [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], ''{{Transliteration|el|krits-krits}}'' in [[Modern Greek|modern]] [[Greek language|Greek]],<ref name="Andersen 1998" /> ''{{lang|sq|cëk-cëk}}'' in [[Albanian language|Albanian]],{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}} and ''{{Transliteration|hi|kaṭr-kaṭr}}'' in [[Hindi]].{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}} Similarly, the "''honk''" of a car's horn is ''{{Transliteration|zh|ba-ba}}'' ([[Han characters|Han]]: {{lang|zh|叭叭}}) in [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]], ''{{lang|fr|tut-tut}}'' in [[French language|French]], ''{{Transliteration|ja|pu-pu}}'' in [[Japanese language|Japanese]], ''{{Transliteration|ko|bbang-bbang}}'' in [[Korean language|Korean]], ''{{lang|no|bært-bært}}'' in [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]], ''{{lang|pt|fom-fom}}'' in [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] and ''{{Transliteration|vi|bim-bim}}'' in [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]].{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}}

=== Onomatopoeic effect without onomatopoeic words ===
An onomatopoeic effect can also be produced in a phrase or word string with the help of [[alliteration]] and [[literary consonance|consonance]] alone, without using any onomatopoeic words. The most famous example is the phrase ''"furrow followed free"'' in [[Samuel Taylor Coleridge]]'s ''[[The Rime of the Ancient Mariner]]''. The words "followed" and "free" are not onomatopoeic in themselves, but in conjunction with "furrow" they reproduce the sound of ripples following in the wake of a speeding ship. Similarly, alliteration has been used in the line ''"as the surf surged up the sun swept shore{{spaces}}..."'' to recreate the sound of breaking waves in the poem "I, She and the Sea".

== Comics and advertising ==
[[File:CRAC w.jpg|thumb|A sound effect of breaking a door]]

[[Comic strip]]s and comic books make extensive use of onomatopoeia, often being visually integrated into the images, so that the drawing style emphasizes the sound. Popular culture historian Tim DeForest noted the impact of writer-artist [[Roy Crane]] (1901–1977), the creator of ''[[Captain Easy]]'' and ''[[Buz Sawyer]]'':
:It was Crane who pioneered the use of onomatopoeic sound effects in comics, adding "bam," "pow" and "wham" to what had previously been an almost entirely visual vocabulary. Crane had fun with this, tossing in an occasional "ker-splash" or "lickety-wop" along with what would become the more standard effects. Words as well as images became vehicles for carrying along his increasingly fast-paced storylines.<ref>{{cite book |last=DeForest |first=Tim |title=Storytelling in the Pulps, Comics, and Radio: How Technology Changed Popular Fiction in America |publisher=McFarland |year=2004 |isbn=9780786419029 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1xAXWwYchscC&q=%22wash+tubbs%22&pg=PA115}}</ref>

In 2002, [[DC Comics]] introduced a villain named [[Onomatopoeia (comics)|Onomatopoeia]], an athlete, martial artist, and weapons expert, who is known to verbally speak sounds ({{em|i.e.}}, to voice onomatopoeic words such as "crash" and "snap" out loud to accompany the applicable event).

Advertising uses onomatopoeia for [[mnemonic]] purposes, so that consumers will remember their products, as in [[Alka-Seltzer]]'s "Plop, plop, fizz, fizz. Oh, what a relief it is!" jingle, recorded in two different versions (big band and rock) by [[Sammy Davis Jr.]]

[[Rice Krispies]] (known as [[Rice Bubbles]] in Australia) make a "snap, crackle, pop" when one pours on milk. During the 1930s, the illustrator [[Vernon Simeon Plemion Grant|Vernon Grant]] developed [[Snap, Crackle and Pop]] as gnome-like mascots for the [[Kellogg Company]].

Sounds appear in road safety advertisements: "clunk click, every trip" (click the seatbelt on after clunking the car door closed; UK campaign) or "click, clack, front and back" (click, clack of connecting the [[seat belt]]s; AU campaign) or "make it click" (click of the seatbelt; McDonalds campaign) or "click it or ticket" (click of the connecting seat belt, with the implied penalty of a traffic ticket for not using a seat belt; US DOT (Department of Transportation) campaign).

The sound of the container opening and closing gives [[Tic Tac]] its name.

=== Manner imitation ===
{{Main|Ideophone}}

In many of the world's languages, onomatopoeic-like words are used to describe phenomena beyond the purely auditive. Japanese often uses such words to describe feelings or figurative expressions about objects or concepts. For instance, Japanese {{Lang|ja-latn|barabara}} is used to reflect an object's state of disarray or separation, and {{Lang|ja-latn|shiiin}} is the onomatopoetic form of absolute silence (used at the time an English speaker might expect to hear the sound of [[cricket (insect)|crickets]] chirping or a pin dropping in a silent room, or someone coughing). In Albanian, {{Lang|sq|tartarec}} is used to describe someone who is hasty. It is used in English as well with terms like ''[[bling]]'', which describes the glinting of light on things like gold, chrome or precious stones. In Japanese, {{Lang|ja-latn|kirakira}} is used for glittery things.

== Examples in media ==
* [[James Joyce]] in ''[[Ulysses (novel)|Ulysses]]'' (1922) coined the onomatopoeic ''{{Not a typo|tattarrattat}}'' for a knock on the door.<ref name="Joyce1982">{{cite book |author=James Joyce |title=Ulysses |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VZdOUXIOBhwC&pg=PT434 |year=1982 |publisher=Editions Artisan Devereaux |isbn=978-1-936694-38-9 |pages=434– |quote=... I was just beginning to yawn with nerves thinking he was trying to make a fool of me when I knew his tattarrattat at the door he must{{spaces}}...}}</ref> It is listed as the longest [[palindromic]] word in ''[[The Oxford English Dictionary]]''.<ref name="Booty2002">{{cite book |author=O.A. Booty |title=Funny Side of English |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PVcHzENuAnMC&pg=PT203 |date=January 1, 2002 |publisher=Pustak Mahal |isbn=978-81-223-0799-3 |pages=203– |quote=The longest palindromic word in English has twelve letters: tattarrattat. This word, appearing in the [[Oxford English Dictionary]], was invented by [[James Joyce]] and used in his book ''[[Ulysses (novel)|Ulysses]]'' (1922), and is an imitation of the sound of someone [farting].}}</ref>
* ''[[Whaam!]]'' (1963) by [[Roy Lichtenstein]] is an early example of [[pop art]], featuring a reproduction of comic book art that depicts a fighter aircraft striking another with rockets with dazzling red and yellow explosions.
* In the 1960s TV series ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]'', comic book style onomatopoeic words such as ''wham!'', ''pow!'', ''biff!'', ''crunch!'' and ''zounds!'' appear onscreen during fight scenes.
* [[Ubisoft]]'s ''[[XIII (video game)|XIII]]'' employed the use of comic book onomatopoeic words such as ''bam!'', ''boom!'' and ''{{Not a typo|noooo}}!'' during gameplay for gunshots, explosions and kills, respectively. The comic-book style is apparent throughout the game and is a core theme, and the game is an adaptation of [[XIII (comics)|a comic book of the same name]].
* The chorus of American popular songwriter [[John Prine]]'s song "Onomatopoeia" incorporates onomatopoeic words: "Bang! went the pistol", "Crash! went the window", "Ouch! went the son of a gun".
* The marble game [[KerPlunk (game)|KerPlunk]] has an onomatopoeic word for a title, from the sound of [[marbles]] dropping when one too many sticks has been removed.
* The [[Nickelodeon]] cartoon's title ''[[KaBlam!]]'' is implied to be onomatopoeic to a crash.
* Each [[List of Harper's Island episodes|episode]] of the TV series ''[[Harper's Island]]'' is given an onomatopoeic name which imitates the sound made in that episode when a character dies. For example, in the episode titled ''"Bang"'' a character is shot and fatally wounded, with the "Bang" mimicking the sound of the gunshot.
* ''[[Mad (magazine)|Mad]]'' Magazine cartoonist [[Don Martin (cartoonist)|Don Martin]], already popular for his exaggerated artwork, often employed creative comic-book style onomatopoeic sound effects in his drawings (for example, ''{{Not a typo|thwizzit}}'' is the sound of a sheet of paper being yanked from a typewriter). Fans have compiled ''The Don Martin Dictionary'', cataloging each sound and its meaning.

== Cross-linguistic examples ==
{{Main|Cross-linguistic onomatopoeias}}

== In linguistics ==
A key component of language is its arbitrariness and what a word can represent,{{clarify|date=May 2017}} as a word is a sound created by humans with attached meaning to said sound.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Assaneo |first1=María Florencia |last2=Nichols |first2=Juan Ignacio |last3=Trevisan |first3=Marcos Alberto |date=January 1, 2011 |title=The anatomy of onomatopoeia |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=6 |issue=12 |pages=e28317 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0028317 |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=3237459 |pmid=22194825|bibcode=2011PLoSO...628317A |doi-access=free }}</ref> It is not possible to determine the meaning of a word purely by how it sounds. However, in onomatopoeic words, these sounds are much less arbitrary; they are connected in their imitation of other objects or sounds in nature. Vocal sounds in the imitation of natural sounds does not necessarily gain meaning, but can gain symbolic meaning.{{clarify|date=May 2017}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=RHODES |first=R |date=1994 |title=Aural Images |journal=In J. Ohala, L. Hinton & J. Nichols (Eds.) Sound Symbolism. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press }}</ref> An example of this [[sound symbolism]] in the English language is the use of words starting with ''sn-''. Some of these words symbolize concepts related to the nose (''sneeze'', ''snot'', ''snore''). This does not mean that all words with that sound relate to the nose, but at some level we recognize a sort of symbolism associated with the sound itself. Onomatopoeia, while a facet of language, is also in a sense outside of the confines of language.<ref name=":1">{{cite journal |last1=Seyedi |first1=Hosein |last2=Baghoojari |first2=ELham Akhlaghi |title=The Study of Onomatopoeia in the Muslims' Holy Write: Qur'an |journal=Language in India |date=May 2013 |volume=13 |issue=5 |pages=16–24 |url=http://languageinindia.com/may2013/elhamonomatopoeiafinal.pdf }}</ref>

In linguistics, onomatopoeia is described as the connection, or symbolism, of a sound that is interpreted and reproduced within the context of a language, usually out of mimicry of a sound.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last=Bredin |first=Hugh |date=August 1, 1996 |title=Onomatopoeia as a Figure and a Linguistic Principle |journal=New Literary History |volume=27 |issue=3 |pages=555–569 |doi=10.1353/nlh.1996.0031 |s2cid=143481219 |issn=1080-661X}}</ref> It is a figure of speech, in a sense. Considered a vague term on its own, there are a few varying defining factors in classifying onomatopoeia. In one manner, it is defined simply as the imitation of some kind of non-vocal sound using the vocal sounds of a language, like the hum of a bee being imitated with a "buzz" sound. In another sense, it is described as the phenomena of making a new word entirely.

Onomatopoeia works in the sense of symbolizing an idea in a phonological context, not necessarily constituting a direct meaningful word in the process.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Laing |first=C. E. |date=September 15, 2014 |title=A phonological analysis of onomatopoeia in early word production |journal=First Language |volume=34 |issue=5 |pages=387–405 |language=en |doi=10.1177/0142723714550110|s2cid=147624168 }}</ref> The symbolic properties of a sound in a word, or a [[phoneme]], is related to a sound in an environment, and are restricted in part by a language's own phonetic inventory, hence why many languages can have distinct onomatopoeia for the same natural sound. Depending on a language's connection to a sound's meaning, that language's onomatopoeia inventory can differ proportionally. For example, a language like English generally holds little symbolic representation when it comes to sounds, which is the reason English tends to have a smaller representation of sound mimicry than a language like Japanese, which overall has a much higher amount of symbolism related to the sounds of the language.

== Evolution of language ==
In ancient Greek philosophy, onomatopoeia was used as evidence for how natural a language was: it was theorized that language itself was derived from natural sounds in the world around us. Symbolism in sounds was seen as deriving from this.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal |last=Osaka |first=Naoyuki |year=1990 |title=Multidimensional Analysis of Onomatopoeia – A note to make sensory scale from word |journal=Studia phonologica |volume=24 |pages=25–33 |id={{NAID|120000892973}} |hdl=2433/52479 }}</ref> Some linguists hold that onomatopoeia may have been the first form of human language.<ref name=":1" />

== Role in early language acquisition ==
When first exposed to sound and communication, humans are biologically inclined to mimic the sounds they hear, whether they are actual pieces of language or other natural sounds.<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal |last1=Assaneo |first1=María Florencia |last2=Nichols |first2=Juan Ignacio |last3=Trevisan |first3=Marcos Alberto |date=December 14, 2011 |title=The Anatomy of Onomatopoeia |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=6 |issue=12 |pages=e28317 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0028317 |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=3237459 |pmid=22194825|bibcode=2011PLoSO...628317A |doi-access=free }}</ref> Early on in development, an infant will vary his/her utterances between sounds that are well established within the phonetic range of the language(s) most heavily spoken in their environment, which may be called "tame" onomatopoeia, and the full range of sounds that the vocal tract can produce, or "wild" onomatopoeia.<ref name=":3" /> As one begins to acquire one's first language, the proportion of "wild" onomatopoeia reduces in favor of sounds which are congruent with those of the language they are acquiring.

During the native language acquisition period, it has been documented that infants may react strongly to the more wild-speech features to which they are exposed, compared to more tame and familiar speech features. But the results of such tests are inconclusive.

In the context of language acquisition, sound symbolism has been shown to play an important role.<ref name=":0" /> The association of foreign words to subjects and how they relate to general objects, such as the association of the words [[Bouba/kiki effect|takete and baluma]] with either a round or angular shape, has been tested to see how languages symbolize sounds.

== In other languages ==
=== Japanese ===
{{Main|Japanese sound symbolism}}

The Japanese language has a large inventory of ideophone words that are symbolic sounds. These are used in contexts ranging from day-to-day conversation to serious news.<ref>Inose, Hiroko. "Translating Japanese Onomatopoeia and Mimetic Words." N.p., n.d. Web.</ref> These words fall into four categories:
* {{Nihongo3||擬声語|Giseigo}}: mimics sounds made by living things including humans. (e.g. {{Nihongo3|||wan-wan}} for a dog's bark)
* {{Nihongo3||擬音語|Giongo}}: mimics sounds in nature made by inanimate objects. (e.g. {{Nihongo3|||zā-zā}} for heavy rainfall)
* {{Nihongo3||擬態語|Gitaigo}}: describes states of the non-auditory external world. (e.g. {{Nihongo3|||bisho-bisho}} for being soaking wet)
* {{Nihongo3||擬情語|Gijōgo}}: describes psychological states or bodily feelings. (e.g. {{Nihongo3|||kuta-kuta}} for being exhausted)

The two former correspond directly to the concept of onomatopoeia, while the two latter are similar to onomatopoeia in that they are intended to represent a concept mimetically and performatively rather than referentially, but different from onomatopoeia in that they aren't just imitative of sounds. For example, {{Nihongo3|||shiinto}} represents something being silent, just as how an anglophone might say "clatter, crash, bang!" to represent something being noisy. That "representative" or "performative" aspect is the similarity to onomatopoeia.

Sometimes Japanese onomatopoeia produces [[Reduplication|reduplicated]] words.<ref name=":4" />

=== Hebrew ===
As in Japanese, onomatopoeia in Hebrew sometimes produces reduplicated verbs:<ref name="language">[[Ghil'ad Zuckermann|Zuckermann, Ghil'ad]] (2003), [[Language Contact and Lexical Enrichment in Israeli Hebrew]]. [[Palgrave Macmillan]]. {{ISBN|9781403917232}} / {{ISBN|9781403938695}} [http://www.palgrave.com/br/book/9781403917232]</ref>{{rp|208}}
** {{Lang|he|שקשק}} {{Lang|he|shikshék}} "to make noise, rustle".<ref name="language"/>{{rp|207}}
** {{Lang|he|רשרש}} {{Lang|he|rishrésh}} "to make noise, rustle".<ref name="language"/>{{rp|208}}

=== Malay ===
There is a documented correlation within the [[Malay language]] of onomatopoeia that begin with the sound bu- and the implication of something that is rounded, as well as with the sound of -lok within a word conveying curvature in such words like {{Lang|ms|lok}}, {{Lang|ms|kelok}} and {{Lang|ms|telok}} ('locomotive', 'cove', and 'curve' respectively).<ref name=":6">{{Cite journal |last=WILKINSON |first=R. J. |title=Onomatopoeia in Malay |date=January 1, 1936 |jstor=41559855 |journal=Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society |volume=14 |issue=3 (126) |pages=72–88}}</ref>

=== Arabic ===
The Qur'an, written in Arabic, documents instances of onomatopoeia.<ref name=":1" /> Of about 77,701 words, there are nine words that are onomatopoeic: three are animal sounds (e.g., ''mooing''), two are sounds of nature (e.g., ''thunder''), and four that are human sounds (e.g., ''whisper'' or ''groan'').

=== Albanian ===
There is wide array of objects and animals in the [[Albanian language]] that have been named after the sound they produce. Such onomatopoeic words are {{Lang|sq|shkrepse}} (matches), named after the distinct sound of friction and ignition of the match head; {{Lang|sq|take-tuke}} (ashtray) mimicking the sound it makes when placed on a table; {{Lang|sq|shi}} (rain) resembling the continuous sound of pouring rain; {{Lang|sq|kukumjaçkë}} ([[Little owl]]) after its "cuckoo" hoot; {{Lang|sq|furçë}} (brush) for its rustling sound; {{Lang|sq|shapka}} (slippers and flip-flops); {{Lang|sq|pordhë}} (loud flatulence) and {{Lang|sq|fëndë}} (silent flatulence).

===Hindi-Urdu ===
In [[Hindi]] and [[Urdu]], onomatopoeic words like {{Lang|hi|bak-bak, cūr-cūr}} are used to indicate silly talk. Other examples of onomatopoeic words being used to represent actions are {{Lang|hi|phaṭāphaṭ}} (to do something fast), {{Lang|ur|dhak-dhak}} (to represent fear with the sound of fast beating heart), {{Lang|ur|ṭip-ṭip}} (to signify a leaky tap) etc. Movement of animals or objects is also sometimes represented with onomatopoeic words like {{Lang|hi|bhin-bhin}} (for a housefly) and {{Lang|hi|sar-sarāhat}} (the sound of a cloth being dragged on or off a piece of furniture). {{Lang|hi|khusr-phusr}} refers to whispering. {{Lang|hi|bhaunk}} means bark.

== See also ==
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* [[Anguish Languish]]
* [[Japanese sound symbolism]]
* [[List of animal sounds]]
* [[List of onomatopoeias]]
* [[Sound mimesis in various cultures]]
* [[Sound symbolism]]
* [[Vocal learning]]
* [[Warblish]]
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== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== General references ===
* {{cite book |last=Crystal |first=David |author-link=David Crystal |year=1997 |title=The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language |edition=2nd |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=0-521-55967-7}}
* {{cite book |last=Smyth |first=Herbert Weir |year=1920 |title=Greek Grammar |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |location=Cambridge MA |isbn=0-674-36250-0 |page=680}}

== External links ==
{{Wiktionary|onomatopoeia}}
{{Commons category|Onomatopoeia}}
* [http://www.eleceng.adelaide.edu.au/Personal/dabbott/animal.html Derek Abbott's Animal Noise Page]
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120531101113/http://www.poetandknowit.com/english-definitions/onomatopoeia-examples.aspx Over 300 Examples of Onomatopoeia]}}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aVOwJfim6s BBC Radio 4 show discussing animal noises]
* [http://www.eeight.com/cartoon-tutorials/drawing-onomatopoeia/ Tutorial on Drawing Onomatopoeia for Comics and Cartoons (using fonts)]
* [http://www.writtensound.com/ WrittenSound, onomatopoeic word list]
* [http://www.examples-of-onomatopoeia.com/ Examples of Onomatopoeia]

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[[Category:Onomatopoeia| ]]
[[Category:Types of words]]
[[Category:Poetic devices]]
[[Category:Style (fiction)]]