Here is the link to Dalton's Atomic Symbols which was used by early alchemists:
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If you look at it carefully you will see that for elements like Zinc, it was represented earlier by a 'Z', which is now represented by a 'Zn'. Iron was too represented by an 'I', which is now represented by a 'Fe' (after its scientific name Ferrous / Ferric.
The alchemists were a group of early experimenters who used symbols to identify certain elements, creating a symbolic language to represent various substances and processes in their experiments. These symbols evolved into the modern chemical symbols we use today.
No, alchemists did not have the same understanding of elements as modern chemistry does. They believed in the concept of four basic elements - earth, water, air, and fire - and sought to transform one element into another to create the philosopher's stone.
Most medieval alchemists believed there were four elements: fire, earth, air, and water. Their idea of elements was a bit different from that of modern chemists. They knew about some chemical elements, including gold, silver, copper, iron, mercury, and sulphur, but they did not know they were elements. They discovered some elements, including bismuth, antimony, and arsenic, but they did not know they were elements either. All of these elements, and everything else in nature, they believed, was made up of varying combinations of fire, earth, air, and water.
He contributed the modern symbols of elements (Ce, Se, Si, Th)
Paracelsus introduced the concept of "disease" to medicine, however rejecting the idea that disease is a matter of imbalance and disharmony in the body. He claimed that disease is caused by agents outside the body attacking it. This was long before viruses and bacteria were discovered.Trimble, Russell, "Alchemy," in The Encyclopedia of the Paranormal edited by Gordon Stein (Buffalo, N.Y.: Prometheus Books, 1996), pp. 1-8.
The symbols of elements were created by various scientists over time based on the element's name, properties, or Latin name. One of the most well-known contributors to the modern periodic table and element symbols is Dmitri Mendeleev, who is credited with arranging the elements by their atomic mass and predicting the properties of undiscovered elements.
Alchemists study and practice Alchemy which is considered a protoscience. While Alchemists are real people with a real purpose, the field they practice has not been proven real, as yet, by scientific protocol. Using a loose definition, you could call chemists modern alchemists. But there were real alchemists who's main goal was to change one substance into another, usually this a cheap metal, like lead, into gold. Though the methods were primitive, the concepts are considered important work towards modern chemistry.
Their attempts to arrange information on substances so they could clarify and anticipate the products of their chemical reactions, resulted in them laying down the foundation for the modern day periodic table of elements.
No single scientist has devised the symbols of the elements. An organization called the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has determined the symbols of the elements on the Periodic Table.
The symbols for elements are typically derived from their Latin or Greek names. Sometimes the symbols are based on old names or properties of the element, which may not directly relate to their modern English names. Over time, these symbols have become standardized and widely accepted in the field of chemistry.
Some islamic alchemists are: Jabir ibn Hayyan, Al-Tughrai, Khalid ibn Yazid, Abu Bakr al Razi, Ibn Umayl etc.
The alchemists were the first chemists. But in addition to mixing chemicals, they also believed that magic would help with their experiments and formulas. It didn't. But their experiments led to the development of the science of chemistry.