Alala
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Alala (Ancient Greek: Ἀλαλά; "battle-cry" or "war-cry"), was the personification of the war cry in Greek mythology. Her name derives from the onomatopoeic Greek word ἀλαλή [alalē],[1] hence the verb ἀλαλάζω (alalaző) "raise the war-cry". Greek soldiers attacked the enemy with this cry in order to cause panic in the enemy lines. It is reputed to be derived from the horrific sound that owls make.[citation needed] Alalaxios (Ἀλαλάξιος) is an epithet of Ares. She is one of those deities whose name remains the same in Roman as in Greek mythology.
Alala is the daughter of Polemos, the personification of war;[2] her aunt was the war goddess, Enyo/Bellona,[3] and her uncle was the war god, Ares/Mars. As such she is one of the attendants of Ares out on the battlefield, along with the rest of his entourage: Phobos and Deimos (his sons); Eris/Discordia, with the Androktasiai, Makhai, Hysminai, and the Phonoi (Eris' children); the Spartoi, and the Keres.
In World War II, during the Greco-Italian War a similar battle cry "άέρα" (aera) was used by the Greek soldiers.[citation needed] In Italy the war-cry (modified as "eja eja alalà") was adopted by the Arditi, a special corps of the Fascist Army. It was invented by Gabriele D'Annunzio after the Capture of Fiume.[citation needed]
