数字人文视域下本草古籍知识组织的创新路径研究—以《植物名实图考》为例(Research on Innovative Paths of Knowledge Organization of Ancient Materia Medica Texts from the Perspective of Digital Humanities：A Case Study of Illustrated Catalogue of Plants Names and Their Identities (Zhiwu Mingshi Tukao))

Abstract

Abstract: The rise of digital humanities offers a new perspective for the exploration and innovation of materia medica classics, advancing traditional philological research from linear reading toward knowledge mining and intelligent services. Materia medica classics, with their well-structured entries and standardized formats, possess inherent advantages for knowledge organization. How-ever, current digitization eff orts largely remain at the level of image scanning and full-text retrieval, lacking fi ne-grained annotation of knowledge elements and semantic linkages, thus failing to construct deep knowledge networks. How to shift from “preserving texts” to “organizing knowledge” has become a critical issue in this fi eld.This paper fi rst reviews the three phases of digitization for materia medica classics: image-based, text-based, and image-text hybrid databases. It compares several major platforms—including Zhonghua Yidian, Zhongyi Dian, and Hantang Diancang—in terms of scale, functionality, and technology, identifying that while existing systems have achieved image-text alignment and full-text search, they remain defi cient in semantic association, cross-database integration, and intelligent retrieval. Subsequently, taking the Qing-dynasty Zhiwu Mingshi Tukao(Illustrated Investigation of Plant Names and Realities) as a case study, the paper analyzes its itemized and structured content features, revealing clear boundaries across dimensions such as name, property, effi cacy, indication, harvesting, and contraindications. This demonstrates that such bibliographic formats are naturally suited for the identifi cation, extraction, and recombination of knowledge elements. Drawing on knowledge element theory and knowledge graph technology, the paper proposes a two-stage reconstruction pathway: “from surface to points — from points to surface.” The fi rst stage granularizes the text into minimal knowledge units; the second stage re-aggregates these units through semantic association into a knowledge graph, thereby realizing a paradigm shift from linear text to multidimensional networks. Around this pathway, a three-layer innovation framework is constructed—comprising the carrier layer, content layer, and application layer—covering data infrastructure, knowledge element indexing, graph construction, and intelligent services. Using the Ginseng(Renshen)entry in Zhiwu Mingshi Tukao as an example, the paper demonstrates the specifi c procedures of knowledge element extraction, semantic association, and implicit knowledge discovery.The study shows that the structured format of materia medica classics aligns well with knowledge element methodologies, and digital humanities technologies can eff ectively propel these texts from “surviving” to “revitalizing”—that is, from digital storage toward knowledge reorganization and intelligent services. This research provides theoretical references and methodological pathways for the digital preservation and intelligent services of materia medica classics, and also explores a feasible approach for the deep integration of digital humanities and traditional Chinese medical literature research.