The genus Reynoldsia was erected in 1854 by Asa GrayReynoldsia in International Plant Names Index. (see External links below). in his account of the botany of the United States Exploring Expedition (1838-1842).Asa Gray. 1854. Series: United States Exploring Expedition (1838-1842); Volume 15: Botany. Phanerogamia.:723. (See External links below). The genus was named for Jeremiah N. Reynolds, a plant collector in Chile in the early 19th century.Umberto Quattrocchi. 2000. CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names volume IV. CRC Press: Boca Raton; New York; Washington,DC;, USA. London, UK. (set). (see External links below). Gray named two species: Reynoldsia pleiosperma from Samoa and Reynoldsia sandwicensis from Hawaii. John Hutchinson designated the latter as the type species for Reynoldsia in 1967.John Hutchinson. 1967. The Genera of Flowering Plants 2:58. This is not recorded in Index Nominum Genericorum, where such information is usually found.Reynoldsia In: Index Nominum Genericorum. In: Regnum Vegetabile (see External links below).
