Human elements and their interactions in frankincense harvesting in Dhofar, Sultanate of Oman: a study of oral narratives

Almashani, Abd Alaziz; Alkathiri, Amer; Alshahre, Omaer

doi:10.21608/bfalex.2023.320696

Human elements and their interactions in frankincense harvesting in Dhofar, Sultanate of Oman: a study of oral narratives

Authors

10.21608/bfalex.2023.320696

Abstract

This study aims to stand on the oral narratives that dealt with the social life related to people who were working in the famous workplaces of frankincense in Dhofar in the south of the Sultanate of Oman. The frankincense tree is called locally: /mġirɔ́t/, and plural is /mġéhr/. Frankincense is extracted from such trees. It has medicinal quality and high economic value. Previous studies indicate that frankincense was exported from the ports of Dhofar to international markets in large quantities and at high prices. Likewise, it was found through previous studies that such studies did not deal with the social interactions that take place inside the frankincense workplaces. Therefore, the current study seeks to clarify the social interactions of the human elements within this system, while addressing the lofty values and principles that characterized all the human elements that were working in this system, through field visits and interviewing the elderly narrators who worked in this system with the aim of collecting and illicit subtle information from them. The study concluded that the work systems in the frankincense workplace are not the same, and that this system contained lofty human principles, values and attitudes that could be utilized and employed in many fields. Accordingly, the study recommends taking advantage of the oral narratives about frankincense and employing them in dramatic and literary works and various cultural activities, because such narratives can be considered as raw and unique material.

Keywords