Uvulariaceae is a family of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s. While seldom recognised, the family is accepted by the

Dahlgren system One of the modern systems of plant taxonomy, the Dahlgren system was published by monocot specialist Rolf Dahlgren in 1975 and revised in 1977, and 1980. However, he is best known for his two treatises on monocotyledons in 1982 and revised in 198 ...

, which places it in order

Liliales Liliales is an order (biology), order of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group and Angiosperm Phylogeny Web List of systems of plant classification, system, within the lilioid monocots. This order of necessity includ ...

, superorder

Lilianae Lilianae (also known as Liliiflorae) is a botanical name for a superorder (that is, a rank higher than that of order) of flowering plants. Such a superorder of necessity includes the type family Liliaceae (and usually the type order Liliales). Ter ...

, and the subclass

Liliidae Liliidae is a botanical name at the rank of subclass. Circumscription of the subclass will vary with the taxonomic system being used (there are many such systems); the only requirement being that it includes the family Liliaceae. Liliidae in Ta ...

monocotyledons Monocotyledons (), commonly referred to as monocots, (Lilianae ''sensu'' Chase & Reveal) are flowering plants whose seeds contain only one embryonic leaf, or cotyledon. A monocot taxon has been in use for several decades, but with various ranks and ...

of class

Magnoliopsida Magnoliopsida is a valid botanical name for a class of flowering plants. By definition the class will include the family Magnoliaceae, but its circumscription can otherwise vary, being more inclusive or less inclusive depending upon the classi ...

angiosperms Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed within a fruit. T ...

The

APG II system The APG II system (Angiosperm Phylogeny Group II system) of plant classification is the second, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly Molecular phylogenetics, molecular-based, list of systems of plant taxonomy, system of plant taxonomy that ...

places the genus ''

Uvularia ''Uvularia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Colchicaceae, which is closely related to the lily family (Liliaceae). They are commonly called bellworts, bellflowers, or merrybells. The genus name is derived from the Latin ''ūvula'' m ...

'' in family

Colchicaceae Colchicaceae is a family of flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; ...

, which is assigned to order

in the clade

monocots Monocotyledons (), commonly referred to as monocots, ( Lilianae '' sensu'' Chase & Reveal) are flowering plants whose seeds contain only one embryonic leaf, or cotyledon. A monocot taxon has been in use for several decades, but with various ranks a ...

. Molecular studies have shown that Uvulariaceae is

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage that includes organisms with mixed evolutionary origin but does not include their most recent common ancestor. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as Homoplasy, homoplasies ...

, meaning that the

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

placed in the family have closer relationships with other plants than with each other. The family have been split and the genera ''

Disporum ''Disporum'' (commonly known as fairy bells) is a genus of about 20 species of perennial flowering plants, found in Asia from northern India to Japan, south to Indonesia and north into the Russian Far East. Taxonomy '' Disporum pullum'', from C ...

'', ''

Kuntheria ''Kuntheria'' is a plant genus related to ''Schelhammera''. It contains one species, ''Kuntheria pedunculata'' (F.Muell.) Conran & Clifford, endemic to Queensland, Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a cou ...

'', ''

Schelhammera ''Schelhammera'' is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Colchicaceae, comprising two species. *'' Schelhammera undulata'' R.Br., native to New South Wales and Victoria *'' Schelhammera multiflora'' R.Br., native to Queensland, Ne ...

'', ''

Tripladenia ''Tripladenia'' is a monotypic genus of plants in the family Colchicaceae. The sole species is ''Tripladenia cunninghamii'' which is native to New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Aus ...

'' and ''

'' are now placed in the autumn crocus family (

), while ''

Clintonia ''Clintonia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the lily family Liliaceae. Plants of the genus are distributed across the temperate regions of North America and eastern Asia, in the mesic habitat, mesic understory of deciduous forests, deciduous ...

'', ''

Medeola ''Medeola virginiana'', known as Indian cucumber, cucumber root, or Indian cucumber-root, is an eastern North American plant species in the lily family, Liliaceae. It is the only currently recognized plant species in the genus ''Medeola''. It gro ...

'', ''

Prosartes ''Prosartes'', the fairybells, is a North American genus of flowering plants in the lily family. For several decades plants of this genus were considered part of the otherwise Asian genus '' Disporum''. Studies of morphology and cytology, as w ...

'', ''

Scoliopus ''Scoliopus'', or fetid adderstongue, is a genus of plant within the family Liliaceae consisting of two species, '' Scoliopus bigelovii'' and '' S. hallii.'' Both are found in deep shaded forests, primarily in the coastal counties of the western ...

'' and '' Streptopus'' are placed in the lily family (

Liliaceae The lily family, Liliaceae, consists of about 15 genera and 610 species of flowering plants within the order Liliales. They are monocotyledonous, perennial, herbaceous, often bulbous geophytes. Plants in this family have evolved with a fai ...

). The genus '' Kreysigia'' has a somewhat troublesome taxonomic history and is either synonymous to ''

'' or ''

'' (which, together with ''

'' should perhaps all be treated as ''Schelhammera'').

External links

Uvulariaceae
in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards).
The families of flowering plants
descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval.'' Version: 9 March 2006. http://delta-intkey.com. {{Taxonbar, from=Q2460903 Historically recognized angiosperm families