PHARMACOPOEIA PHARMACOPOBIA, PHARMACOPEIA, OR PHARMACOPOBA (LITERALLY, "DRUG-MAKING"), IN ITS MODERN TECHNICAL SENSE, IS A BOOK CONTAINING DIRECTIONS FOR THE IDENTIFICATION OF COMPOUND MEDICINES, AND PUBLISHED BY THE AUTHORITY OF A GOVERNMENT OR A MEDICAL (OR PHARMACEUTICAL SOCIETY. DESCRIPTIONS OF PREPARATIONS ARE CALLED MONOGRAPHS. IN A BROADER SENSE IT IS A REFERENCE, WORK FOR PHARMACEUTICAL DRUG SPECIFICATIONS. ETYMOLOGY DERIVES FROM ANCIENT GREEK 9UPHOKOTOMN (praRMaKOPoHA), FROM PEOUBKO (xLARMIAKON) “DRUG', FOLLOWED BY THE VERBSTEM MMOL (POF) 'MAKE’ AND FINALLY THE ABSTRACT NOUN ENDING -Id (-14). THESE THREE ELEMENTS TOGETHER CAN BE RENDERED AS 'DRUG-MAK-ING' IN EARLY MODERN EDITIONS OF LATIN TENTS, THE GREEK SPELLINGS (F), K (Ks) AND OF (01) ARE RESPECTIVELY WRITTEN AS Pit, G AND Gi, GIVING THE SPELLING PilARMACOPGrA. IN UK ENGLISH, ‘THE LETTER G& 1S RENDERED AS OF, GIVING US THE SPELLING PHARMACOPOEIA, WHILE IN AMERICAN ENGLISH OF BECOMES £, GIVING US THE SPELLING PHARMACOPELA. HISTORY ALTHOUGH OLDER WRITINGS EXIST WHICH DEAL WITH HERBAL MEDICINE, THE MAJOR INITIAL WORKS IN THE FIBLD ARE CONSIDERED TO BE EDWIN SMITH PAPYRUS IN EGyPT, PLINY's PHARMACOPOEIA ano De Marerta Mepica ( Tepi GAng larpiktig ), 4 FIVE VOLUME BOOK ORIGINALLY WRITTEN IN GREEK BY PeDANtUS Dioscoripes. THE LATTER IS CONSIDERED TO BE PRECURSOR TO ALL MODERN PHARMACOPOEIAS, AND IS ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL HERBAL HOOKS IN HISTORY. IN FACT IT REMAINED IN USE UNTIL ABOUT CE 1600. A. NUMBER OF EARLY PHARMACOPOEIA BOOKS WERE WRITTEN BY PERSIAN PHYSICIANS, THESE, INCLUDED The CANON OF MEDICINE OF AVICENNA IN 1025, AND WORKS BY IBN ZUHR(AVENZOAR) BN THE 12TH CENTURY (AND PRINTED IN 1491), AND IBN BAYTAR IN THE MMTH CENTURY. THE SHEN- NUNG PEN TS'AO CHING (DIVINE HUSBANDMAN'S MATERIA MEDICA) IS THE EARLIEST KNOWN CHINESE PHARMACOPIA. THE TEXT DESCRIBES 365 MEDICINES DERIVED FROM PLANTS ANIMALS AND MINERALS; ACCORDING TO LEGEND IT WAS WRITTEN BY THE CHINESE GOD SHENNONG.