Meanings
ulama1
ulama2
- alternativepluralplural onlyIslamAlternative form of ulema.
There he […] became disillusioned with much of the Islamic clerical establishment, and first expressed his contempt for what he called ‘religious secularists’, those foolish ulama who attempt to separate politics from religion.
2000, Zadie Smith, White Teeth, London: Penguin Books, published 2001, →ISBN, page 469
ulama3
- The devil bird (an avian cryptid of Sri Lanka)
There is a bird in Ceylon, which the natives call ulama, or the demon bird, which utters most loud and ear-piercing screams, strongly resembling the shrieks of a human being in severe bodily agony.
1849 June 28, The Dublin University Magazine, page 692
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe body of Mullahs (Muslim scholars trained in Islam and Islamic law) who are the interpreters of Islam's sciences and doctrines and laws and the chief guarantors of continuity in the spiritual and intellectual history of the Islamic community
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
ulama · noun
- Classical Nahuatlōllamaliztli
- Englishulama
Ultimately from Classical Nahuatl ōllamaliztli. Doublet of ullamaliztli.
More words from Classical Nahuatl
Full word history & related roots →ulama · noun
- Arabicعُلَمَاء
- Englishulama
Borrowed from Arabic عُلَمَاء (ʕulamāʔ). Doublet of ulema and olema.
More words from Arabic
Full word history & related roots →ulama · noun
- Sinhalese[Term?]
- Englishulama
Borrowed from Sinhalese [Term?].
More words from Sinhalese
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
ulama. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ulama
“ulama.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ulama. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ulama,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ulama.
Source: ulama on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.