1894 Brewer’s / C / Chemistry [kemistry]
is from the Arabic kimia, whence al-kimia (the occult art), from kamai (to conceal).
Inorganic chemistry is that branch of chemistry which is limited to metallic and non-metallic substances, which are not organised bodies.
Organic chemistry is devoted to organised bodies and their elements.
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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.