Zingiberaceae

Also known as ginger family

Zingiberaceae, the ginger family, is a family of flowering plants containing 58 genera and about 1600 described species distributed globally in the tropics and subtropics. They are aromatic perennial herbs with creeping rhizomes, sometimes tuberous. Basal leaf sheathing forms a pseudostem taller than their true stems which emerge unbranched. Flowers are typically zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical) and inflorescence is raceme. Fruit is typically a dry capsule and seeds are arillate.

AI overview

The ginger family (Zingiberaceae) is a large group of flowering plants found in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide, with about 1,600 species known for their aromatic qualities and distinctive features like creeping underground stems called rhizomes. These plants matter because they include many economically and culturally important species used in cooking, medicine, and other applications, while also displaying unique botanical characteristics such as their bilaterally symmetrical flowers and the way their leaves form tall pseudostems.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Species

Zingiberaceae

FAMILY

KingdomPlantae
PhylumTracheophyta
ClassLiliopsida
OrderZingiberales
FamilyZingiberaceae

Observations0

Observations recorded203,824

薑科（學名：Zingiberaceae）是單子葉植物薑目的一科。本科約有47屬，700種，主要分佈在熱帶地區。中国有17属约120种，主要分布在南方各地。姜科是多年生草本，通常具有芳香，茎短，有匍匐的或块状的根莖，叶基部具有叶鞘；花两性，两侧对称，花瓣3，下部合生成管；果实为蒴果，种子常具有假种皮。本科植物很多種類是重要的調味料和藥用植物。本科重要的成員有薑，砂仁、薑黃、鬱金、蘘荷、大荳蔻、小荳蔻、草荳蔻、紅荳蔻、山奈、月桃…等。屬非洲豆蔻屬 Aframomum 天堂椒（Aframomum melegueta）山薑屬（Alpinia），月桃屬。距花山薑（Alpinia calcarata）大高良薑（Alpinia galanga）高良薑（Alpinia officinarum）艷山薑（Alpinia zerumbet），月桃。草荳蔻（Alpinia katsumadai）豆蔻属（Amomum）白豆蔻（Amomum cardamomum）砂仁（Amomum villosum）草果（Amomum tsao-ko） Aulotandra 凹唇姜属（Boesenbergia） Burbigdea Camptandra Caulokaempferia 距药姜属（Cautleya）薑黃屬（Curcuma），鬱金屬（日文郁金），130多種。薑荷花（Curcuma alsimatifolia）郁金（Curcuma aromatica）广西莪术（Curcuma kwangsiensis）薑黃（Curcuma longa）莪术（Curcuma zedoaria） Curcumorpha Cyphostigma 小豆蔻屬（Elettaria）小豆蔻（Elettaria caramomum） Elettariopsis Etlingera Gagnepainia Geocharis 舞花姜属（Globba） Haniffia Haplochorema 薑花屬（Hedychium），蝴蝶薑屬。野薑花（Hedychium coronarium） Hemiorchis Hitchenia 大豆蔻属（Hornstedtia）山柰屬（Kaempferia），孔雀薑屬。山柰（Kaempferia galanga） Leptosolena Mantisia Nanochilus Paracautleya Parakaempferia Plagiostachys Pleuranthodium 直唇姜属（Pommereschea） Renealmia 喙花姜属（Rhynchanthus） Riedelia 象牙参属（Roscoea） Scaphochlamys 长果姜属（Siliquamomum） Siphonochilus Stadiochilus 土

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Research

8,448 papers

Zingiberaceae plants/curcumin consumption and multiple health outcomes: An umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials in humans.Phytotherapy research : PTR · 2022Zhang X, Deng J, Tang Y et al.DOI: 10.1002/ptr.7500
Zingiberaceae extracts for pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Nutrition journal · 2015Lakhan SE, Ford CT, Tepper DDOI: 10.1186/s12937-015-0038-8
Endophytes of Zingiberaceae: distribution and bioactivity of their bioactive metabolites.ReviewArchives of microbiology · 2025Hasali NHM, Shahbaz M, Seelan JSS et al.DOI: 10.1007/s00203-025-04335-x
Modulating Effects of Zingiberaceae Phenolic Compounds on Neurotrophic Factors and Their Potential as Neuroprotectants in Brain Disorders and Age-Associated Neurodegenerative Disorders: A Review.ReviewNutrients · 2023Razak AM, Tan JK, Mohd Said M et al.DOI: 10.3390/nu15112564
Zingiberaceae in Cardiovascular Health: A review of adipokine modulation and endothelial protection via adipocyte-endothelial crosstalk mechanism.ReviewCurrent nutrition reports · 2025Naidu D, Althaf Umar KP, Muhsina K et al.DOI: 10.1007/s13668-025-00656-x
Antioxidant Activity in Extracts from Zingiberaceae Family: Cardamom, Turmeric, and Ginger.ReviewMolecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Ballester P, Cerdá B, Arcusa R et al.DOI: 10.3390/molecules28104024
Effects of medical plants from Zingiberaceae family on cardiovascular risk factors of type 2 diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Journal of food biochemistry · 2022Zhang X, Chen X, Tang Y et al.DOI: 10.1111/jfbc.14130
Antimicrobial Potential of Natural Compounds of Zingiberaceae Plants and their Synthetic Analogues: A Scoping Review of In vitro and In silico Approaches.Current topics in medicinal chemistry · 2024Yit KH, Zainal-Abidin ZDOI: 10.2174/0115680266294573240328050629

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Wikidata facts

Image: Tropical plant hilo5.jpg

Show 4 more facts

Commons category: Zingiberaceae
taxon common name: ingverjevke
taxon name: Zingiberaceae
GRIN URL: npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomyfamily.aspx?id=1208

Sources (3)

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~10 min read

Article

16 sections

Contents

Morphology
Leaves and stems
Flowers
Fruit and seeds
Rhizomes and roots
Pollination
Distribution
Evolution and ecology
Conservation
Human uses and history
Genera
Taxonomy
Subdivisions
References
Bibliography
External links

Ancient fossils and phylogenetics indicate the Zingiberaceae evolved in Africa during the mid-Cretaceous period. The dispersal of these plants across Asia, the Americas, and Australia followed the expansion of tropical rain forest habitat soon after this period. In tropical Southeast Asia, conservation efforts are following the high diversity of endemic and threatened Zingiberaceae species due to deforestation and forest degradation. Habitat conservation is important for local cultures and economies in Thailand and its surrounding region, where Zingiberaceae species are grown for food, medicine, and socio-religious activities. ==Morphology == thumb|Illustration Zingiber officinale from Köhler's Medicinal PlantsFile:Zingiber officinale rhizome.jpg|thumb|Zingiber officinale rhizome