Objective: A song is created by harmoniously combining a poem (lyrics) with suitable music (composition). In Turkish music, there are numerous musical scales known as “makamlar” and rhythmic patterns called “usuller.” Concepts related to health, illness, and the physician are frequently encountered in song lyrics as cultural products. This study aims to reveal the relationship between disease, treatment, and culture through the concepts of “wound” and “ointment” in songs related to physicians and health, focusing on the frequency of their use and the specific “makamlar” and “usuller” employed.

Material and Method: This study is descriptive in nature. Songs containing the words “wound” and/or “ointment” from the book “Physicians in ffolk Songs and ffolk Songs About Health” were examined using the document analysis method.

Results: Although the words “wound” are used in many contexts in the songs, they are most commonly used to mean “heartache”, and the use of the word “ointment” establishes a relationship between affliction and remedy. It was found that the examined works are most often performed in the “Hicaz” mode and the “Düyek” rhythm.

Discussion and Conclusion: The use of the concepts of “wound” and “ointment” to describe the psychological distress caused by love is based on the fact that “wound”, as a dermatological lesion, affects people psychologically and socially and is primarily treated with “ointment.” The frequent performance of these songs in the Hicaz mode suggests a connection between the impact of this mode on people and the use of the concepts of "wound" and "ointment" to mean “heartache.” The respect for love among the people of Anatolia might have shown itself as a therapeutic practice, where the Hicaz mode, believed to instill humility, helps heal the “wound” caused by love by fostering a sense of humility in those afflicted by love's sorrow.

Song Medicine Culture Wound Ointment