For the three dudes out there who are still interested in this...
A Google search basically provided this general information on the uvula:
There is disagreement among medical professionals as to the necessity of this organ. Some consider it vestigial and useless; others feel it IS important for speech.
Mostly what I gather is that those who have lost their uvula at an early age or in the rare case where the uvula is missing at birth as the result of a palette deformity are most likely to have difficulty learning to speak correctly. Those who have their uvula removed later in life don't seem to have any problems with speech or general life without it.
This would seem to support my own experiences.
At any rate, whatever the hell a uvula does, it's a fun word to say. I have always enjoyed it ever since I learned at as a kid in a Saturday Night Live sketch with Gilda Radner, back in the days when the show as actually funny.
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