Eriolaena

Eriolaena is a genus of flowering plants. Traditionally included in the family Sterculiaceae, it is included now in the recently expanded Malvaceae. The genus is distributed in Asia and eastern Africa, from southern China through Indochina to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, and coastal Mozambique.

These plants are trees or shrubs. They usually have single or paired white or yellow flowers, but some species have larger inflorescences. The fruit is a hard capsule with winged seeds. The winged seeds make the genus distinctive in its family.

The former Madagascan genera Helmiopsiella and Helmiopsis are now considered synonyms of Eriolaena. These genera were named in honour of C. Helm, German clergyman in Berlin and amateur botanist.