Boticario /farmacéutico
I started reading 'un camino'by Delibes and a boy's father was described as 'boticario' I looked it up and found it to be Chemist/pharmacist [druggist in USA]
I was going to use the word in the jobs ABC game but thought is it appropriate. I am guessing it is like the difference in the UK - everyone used to use chemist - for the shop and the person who dispensed the medicine but now if you are going for a prescription you will use pharmacy and pharmacist
Are there regional differences? Is one a more general term than the other?
2 Answers
Actually, boticario is the person who attends a botica.
According to the RAE:
botica1. (Del gr. ???????, almacén; cf. bodega). 1. f. Farmacia, laboratorio y despacho de medicamentos.
boticario, ria. (De botica). 1. m. y f. Persona que profesa la ciencia farmacéutica y que prepara y expende las medicinas.
As you can see, botica and boticario and farmacia and farmacéutico are more or less the same, and some times they are used indistintely.
farmacia. (Del lat. pharmac?a, y este del gr. ????????). 3. f. Laboratorio y despacho del farmacéutico.
farmacéutico, ca. (Del lat. pharmaceut?cus, y este del gr. ?????????????). 2. m. y f. Persona que, provista del correspondiente título académico, profesa o ejerce la farmacia.
That said, I would like to add that, at least in México, "botica" is less used nowadays, and it is a kind of archaism to refer to the old retail shops where the boticario prepared and expended remedies, and he sold ingredients as well as patented medicines. The boticario also offered general medical advice.
I never heard "boticario" (this is the first time in fact) but I gather that it comes from "botiquín" (where are stored the drugs) It may be a regionalism. Anyway for me "farmacéutico" is more common than "boticario" 
