The word “pharmacy” – “apotheke” – from the Greek, and it was originally used to refer to a kind of storage – a warehouse, and not related to medicines in any way.
In 400 BC, the word “pharmacy” was first used by the physician Hippocrates to refer to a place to store medicines. Much later, in the 2nd century AD, Claudius Galen began to talk about the pharmacy as a place where medicines are not only stored, but also prepared.
In ancient times, home pharmacies existed only in noble families. Ordinary people were treated by healers. In the hospitals near the monasteries, special rooms were also set aside for the preparation of medicines.
The first registered pharmacy in the world was opened in the 8th century in Baghdad, the capital of the Arab Caliphate. Much later, in the 11th century, during the flourishing period of monasteries and monastic orders, it began to function in Spain, and then in many European cities. At that time, the monks were engaged in preparing medicine and distributed those medicines to the sick for free. In the twelfth century, the medical school in Solerno began to actively develop, which was the impetus for the opening of the first urban pharmacies.
Pharmacies occupied a special place among commercial enterprises from the very beginning. Their creation, forms of activity, degree of qualification of employees, prices of medicines, the order of their release and storage were regulated on the basis of the legislation in force at that time. In this regard, the decree of Frederick II Staufen (1194-1250), one of the most educated people of his time, the king of Sicily and Germany, as well as the Holy Roman Emperor, can be considered one of the most commendable. This document, printed in 1224, defined for the first time the functions of a doctor and a pharmacist. Doctors were forbidden to prepare and sell medicines, and pharmacists were forbidden to treat patients, that is, everyone had to do their “highly specialized” work.
In the 15th century, a new position, “provisor” appeared. Pharmacists had a very important role in the process of treating patients. Doctors made diagnoses, and pharmacists predicted the future development of the disease and thought out the method of treatment with medicines.
Currently, there are more than 1.5 million retail pharmacies in the world. China (918,000 by 2018), Brazil (more than 80,000) and India (about 70,000) top the list.
Source: https://www.vokrugsveta.ru/articles/kakimi-byli-pervye-apteki-id681500/
