Wightia is a genus of flowering plants tentatively sister to the Phrymaceae which currently contains only two species. It grows as a tree, or a hemiepiphytic pseudo-vine, up to 15 metres (49 ft) tall.[2] It is found in South Asia and South East Asia, from Nepal and India to Thailand, Vietnam and China's Yunnan Province, at altitudes below 2,500 m (8,200 ft).[2] There are still morphological characters as well as nuclear genome data to support Wightia as sister to Paulownia leading it to be of proposed hybrid origin from Phrymaceae and Paulowniaceae.[3] Due to chloroplast and mitochondrial data showing Wightia as sister to Phrymaceae it is proposed that a new family Wightiaceae be recognized.[4]
^Liu, Bing; Tan, Yun‐Hong; Liu, Su; Olmstead, Richard G.; Min, Dao‐Zhang; Chen, Zhi‐Duan; Joshee, Nirmal; Vaidya, Brajesh N.; Chung, Richard C. K.; Li, Bo (2019-09-03). "Phylogenetic relationships of Cyrtandromoea and Wightia revisited: A new tribe in Phrymaceae and a new family in Lamiales". Journal of Systematics and Evolution. 58: 1–17. doi:10.1111/jse.12513. ISSN1674-4918.
