The yew family (Taxaceae) consists of evergreen trees and shrubs that can be divided into six genera, which include Amentotaxus (4 species occurring mostly in China), Austrotaxus (1 species found exclusively in New Caledonia, an island territory in the South Pacific), Cephalotaxus (6 species endemic to eastern Asia), Pseudotaxus (1 species occurring in southern China), Taxus (number of species still a matter of debate; distribution across the northern hemisphere but mainly in North America, Europe and Southeast Asia), and Torreya (6 or 7 species native to East Asia and North America). However, the taxonomy of the genus Taxus has remained controversial, mostly due to the lack of diagnostic morphological characters and the high degree of similarity among species.

The taxonomic classification of the yew family is as follows:

Kingdom Plantae
Clade Tracheophytes
Division Pinophyta
Class Pinopsida
Order Pinales
Family Taxaceae