Perennials, often small. Culms densely tufted, slender, unbranched. Leaf blades mainly basal, filiform to setaceous, usually involute; ligule a narrow membrane fringed with hairs. Inflorescence a solitary unilateral terminal raceme. Spikelets subsessile, biseriate, broadside to rachis, linear to elliptic, laterally compressed, florets 2 to several, rachilla disarticulating above glumes and between florets; glumes narrow, shorter than lemmas or upper glume exceeding lowest lemma, unequal, membranous, 1-veined or upper glume sometimes 3-veined, keeled, acute to emarginate and mucronate, lower glume often with a lobe or tooth on one side; lemmas lanceolate to ovate, membranous, 3-veined, glabrous, lightly keeled or rounded, 2-dentate, midvein produced into an awn, teeth usually also mucronate or awned; palea keels scabrid or ciliolate, often winged. Floret callus bearded. Stamens 1–3. Caryopsis narrow, trigonous to subterete.

About 30 species: Old World tropics, one species in tropical America; 11 species (five endemic) in China.

(Authors: Chen Shouliang (陈守良); Sylvia M. Phillips)