The origin and development of agriculture depend on the discovery and utilization of elite crop germplasm resources. Crop germplasmics is a discipline that studies the diversity and utilization of crops and their wild relatives. Darwin’s theories of evolution and genetic variation, as well as de Candolle’s theory of the origin of cultivated plants, laid the groundwork for the emergence of crop germplasm resources as a field of study. Vavilov’s center-of-origin theory and the law of homologous series in genetic variation, and the global collecting of germplasm resources by European and American scientists fostered the initial growth of the discipline. Advances in germplasm conservation, information management, and molecular identification have further driven its continuous development. Entering the 21st century, crop germplasm resources research has entered a new prosperous stage featuring comprehensive conservation and shared utilization, precision characterization and germplasm enhancement, and large-scale gene mining. The theoretical connotation of crop germplasmics has been continuously enriched, and its technical system has been steadily improved, providing strong scientific and technological support for global food security and the sustainable development of agriculture.