藥名文學是指將傳統藥材名稱鑲嵌於詩、詞、駢文、曲、酒令、戲曲之中，以離合、諧音、雙關之手法，獲得文學趣味之作品。本篇闡述藥名文學成為一種特殊文學體裁之原因，及其形式之發展演變。傳統藥名之特性：一、好用隱語。二、異名異種多。三、具有知識性或傳奇性。四、適合寫景抒情。五、物種繁多，民眾熟悉。歷代藥名文學之發展，依照：一、造端。二、醞釀。三、建立。四、成熟。五、應用。六、復興等六階段作敘述。結語作藥名文學之價值分析，並認為現代人生活形態多樣化，思路活潑，更可以藉諧音與離合的雙關手法來創作藥名文學。 The literature of herbal names integrates the names of traditional herbal medicine into poems, songs, and opera by puns and homophones to create the amusement of the literature. This article illustrated the reasons why it became a special literature genre and the development of its style. The characteristics of traditional herbal medicine are (a) the use of enigmatic language in herbal names, (b) the variation and different types of herbal medicine, and (c) the familiarity of the audience. The historical development of herbal names literature was described based on the following six stages: (1) Initiation Period,(2) brew Period, (3) Establishment Period, (4) Maturation Period, (5) Application Period, and (6) Revival Period. The paper concluded with the analysis of the value of herbal name literature, and proposed that people can use homophones and puns to create herbal name literature, because their life styles are full of varieties and lively thoughts.
