Gardenia is a genus of flowering plants in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, native to the tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Asia, Madagascar, Pacific Islands, and Australia. The Gardenia genus was named by Carl Linnaeus (though the name was first proposed to him in 1753 by Jane Colden, who often goes uncredited ) and John Ellis. The genus was named after Alexander Garden (1730–1791), a Scottish naturalist. The type species is Gardenia jasminoides, as first published by Ellis in 1761.

Closest relatives