'topical' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'topikos' (from 'topos'), where 'topos' meant 'place'.

'topical' passed into Late Latin as 'topicus' and then into Middle French/Latin learnings before becoming the modern English word 'topical' in the 17th century.

Initially, it meant 'of or relating to a place' (from Greek), then broadened to mean 'relating to a topic or subject', and later acquired a specialized medical sense 'applied to a bodily surface'.