Cohobation

/koʊ.hoʊˈbeɪ.ʃən/ noun

Definition

The alchemical process of repeatedly distilling a liquid by pouring the distillate back onto the remaining material.

Etymology

From Medieval Latin 'cohobatio,' derived from Arabic 'al-cohob.' The term was widely used in European alchemy and early chemistry from the 15th through 18th centuries.

Kelly Says

Cohobation appears in the oldest European chemistry textbooks, showing how Islamic scientific knowledge flowed into Western Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance—a real-world example of knowledge transfer across cultures.

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