Traditional Chinese Pharmaceuticals

Traditional Chinese pharmaceuticals enjoy a venerated history, but the term itself was not coined until Western pharmaceuticals found their way into China.

Modern Western pharmacology began to spread into China during the Ming-Qing interregnum, and was coexisting with traditional Chinese pharmacology in some major Chinese cities by the 1920s. The terms “traditional Chinese medicine” and “traditional Chinese pharmacology” are coined to distinguish traditional Chinese medical science form its Western counterpart.

Traditional Chinese pharmaceuticals are made from medicinal herbs and animal, and named after the materials' names, medical effects, originality in growth, shapes, forms, and even the legends about them. Traditional Chinese pharmacology is a major contribution China makes to humankind.