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What Does the Prescription Symbol “Rx” Mean and Where Did the Pharmacist Symbol Originate?

By Karen Hill

To the Romans, the pursuit of the healing arts and the distribution of medicine was the highest professional calling possible and therefore could only be ordained by Jupiter.

The “R” in “Rx” is from the Latin word recipere, meaning “to have been prescribed” or “to take,” while the small “x” was the god king’s symbol of approval.

To the Romans, the “Rx” meant that the great god Jupiter himself had a hand in the prescription.

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Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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