 Current insights in the relationships of "Gymnarrhena" to the closest Asterid subfamilies are represented by the following tree.The early production of few large seeds followed by production of many small seeds may have been the result of the variable and unpredictable growing season, fitting to a pioneer species.The genus name "Gymnarrhena" may be a contraction of two Greek words, "γυμνός" (gymnos) meaning "naked" and "ἄῤῥην" (arrhēn), "male", while the species epithet "micrantha" is a contraction of the Greek words "μικρός" (mikrós), "small" and "ἄνθος" (ánthos), "flower".