The Rooster Says Kukariku!

Mimicking strange and funny animal sounds from other cultures and languages!

Who knew that each culture has its own set of different onomatopoeia* for animal sounds (*words invented to mimic the sound of the thing they describe)? Each follows the unique alphabet and distinct sounds of the native language.

A dog may say "bark" or "woof" in the English-speaking world, but across the globe, Russians say "gaff-gaff." In most places a chick says "peep, peep," but in Greece, they say "tsiou, tsiou," and in France, they say "cui, cui." And in America, a rooster might say "cockadoodle-doo," but almost everywhere else -- most of the world agrees -- a rooster says "KUKARIKU!"

Come along on a fun phonetic trek around the world to discover new and delightful, strange-sounding words for animal sounds that you once found familiar, but may not again. A hilarious time for young and old, to be read again and again and again. Some will sound very odd.

Sometimes most of the world agrees on what sound best describes each animal -- and sometimes, they're surprising and wonderful! Some will surprise and make much better sense, becoming instant favorites. That is why, as far as we're concerned, a rooster never says "COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO," but only "KUKARIKU!"