The Clethraceae are a small

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s in the order

Ericales The Ericales are a large and diverse order of dicotyledons. Species in this order have considerable commercial importance including for tea, persimmon, blueberry, kiwifruit, Brazil nuts, argan, and azalea. The order includes trees, bushes, lia ...

, composed of two genera, ''

Clethra ''Clethra'' is a genus of flowering shrubs or small trees described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753.Purdiaea ''Purdiaea'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Clethraceae described as a genus in 1846. It is one of two genera in this family, and was formerly classified in the related family Cyrillaceae. ''Purdiaea'' is native to tropical regions ...

'', with approximately 75 species. They are native to warm temperate to tropical regions of

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

and the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

, with one species also on

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

. In the past, most botanists included only ''Clethra'' in the family, but recent research has shown ''Purdiaea'', previously placed in the closely related family

Cyrillaceae The Cyrillaceae are a small family (biology), family of flowering plants in the order Ericales, native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Americas. The family comprises two genera, ''Cliftonia'' and ''Cyrilla'', each containing a single ...

, is more closely allied to ''Clethra''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q157454 Ericales families Ericales Taxa named by Johann Friedrich Klotzsch