Oleaceae

Oleaceae (), also known as the olive family or sometimes the lilac family, is a taxonomic family of flowering shrubs, trees, and a few lianas in the order Lamiales. It presently comprises 28 genera, one of which is recently extinct. The extant genera include Cartrema, which was resurrected in 2012. The number of species in the Oleaceae is variously estimated in a wide range around 700. The flowers are often numerous and highly odoriferous. The family has a subcosmopolitan distribution, ranging from the subarctic to the southernmost parts of Africa, Australia, and South America. Notable members include olive, ash, jasmine, and several popular ornamental plants including privet, forsythia, fringetrees, and lilac.

==Genera== The following 29 extant genera are recognized in the family Oleaceae. Linociera is not included, even though some authors continue to recognize it. Linociera is not easy to distinguish from Chionanthus, mostly because the latter is polyphyletic and not clearly defined. Tribe Myxopyreae Myxopyrum Blume Dimetra Kerr Nyctanthes L. Tribe Forsythieae Abeliophyllum Nakai – white forsythia Forsythia Vahl – forsythia Tribe Fontanesieae Fontanesia Labill. Tribe Jasmineae Chrysojasminum Banfi Menodora Humb. & Bonpl. Jasminum L. – jasmine Tribe Oleeae Subtribe Ligustrinae Syringa L. – lilac Ligustrum L. – privet Subtribe Schreberinae Comoranthus Knobl. Schrebera Roxb. Subtribe Fraxininae Fraxinus L. – ash Subtribe Oleinae Cartrema Raf. Chengiodendron Chionanthus L. – fringe tree Forestiera Poir. – swamp privet Haenianthus Griseb. Hesperelaea A.Gray Nestegis Raf. Noronhia Stadman ex Thouars Notelaea Vent. Olea L. – olive Osmanthus Lour. – osmanthus Phillyrea L. – mock-privet Picconia D.C. Priogymnanthus P.S.Green Tetrapilus