Rhizomes tuberous. Pseudostems absent. Leaves few, arising directly from rhizomes, petiolate; leaf blade obovate- or lanceolate-oblong or lanceolate. Inflorescences pedunculate, capitate, surrounded by a campanulate involucre, several flowered. Calyx tubular, apex slightly 3-toothed. Corolla white, tubular, distally 3-lobed. Staminodes white, petaloid. Labellum white, rarely purple, with a central, yellow blotch, apex emarginate or shortly 2-lobed. Filament short, flat; connective appendage flat or absent. Ovary 3-loculed. Stylodes absent. Seeds globose.

Stahlianthus rubromarginatus S. Q. Tong (Acta Phytotax. Sin. 33: 499. 1995) was described from a cultivated plant introduced to Mengla, S Yunnan from N Myanmar. It was transferred to Kaempferia by Searle (Telopea 8: 375. 1999), as K. rubromarginata (S. Q. Tong) R. J. Searle, but, according to Wu and Chen (Acta Phytotax. Sin. 34: 204. 1996), it is a synonym of K. parviflora Wallich ex Baker, which is distributed in India, Myanmar, and Thailand.

Six species: Cambodia, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Sikkim, Thailand, Vietnam; one species in China.