Interesting. The description sounds eerily similar to the "oppaari" in South India or "rudaali" in north. Very similar structures (though linguistically different, obviously). Usually old women wailing at deaths, uncontrollably, often hired to do so. Could possibly help those suffering the loss complete the grief process quicker and help those who refuse to cry to breakdown and let it go. The professional criers are often just able to start and stop wailing pretty much instantly too.
"Bás in Éirinn", subtitled "May you die in Ireland" is a good book of excellent stories (with the Irish and English text facing each other on each pair of pages).
Humorous, mostly. In one of them "God rest Mící", the keening of the wife and the old woman (who is the professional keener), are contrasted, "As the old woman said, her keening had too much music in it" (as the widow is seen around town with a new man that year).
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[ 3.5 ms ] story [ 17.7 ms ] threadHumorous, mostly. In one of them "God rest Mící", the keening of the wife and the old woman (who is the professional keener), are contrasted, "As the old woman said, her keening had too much music in it" (as the widow is seen around town with a new man that year).