About 90 genera and over 2000 species, mainly in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere; some genera also in the southern hemisphere and in mountains of the tropics.
The family is subdivided into 3 subfamilies: Alsinoideae, Silenoideae (Caryophylloideae) and Paronychioideae. Most genera of these subfamilies are represented in the Flora Palaestina. In the Alsinoideae: Arenaria, Bolanthus, Cerastium, Holosteum, Minuartia, Moenchia, Sagina, Scleranthus, Stellaria.
In the Silenoideae: Agrostemma, Ankyropetalum, Bufonia, Dianthus, Gypsophila, Petrorhagia, Saponaria, Silene, Vaccaria, Velezia.
In the Paronychioideae: Cometes, Corrigiola, Gymnocarpos, Herniaria, Loeflingia, Paronychia, Polycarpaea, Polycarpon, Pteranthus, Sclerocephalus, Spergula, Spergularia, Telephium.
Literature: Pax F. & Hoffmann K., Caryophyllaceae, in: Engler u. Prantl, Natürl. Pflanzenfam. ed. 2, 16c: 275-367 (1934). Rohweder H., Weitere Beitrage zur Systematik und Phylogenie der Caryophyllaceen unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der karyologischen Verhaltnisse, Beih. Bot. Centralbl. 59, 2: 1-58 (1938). Janchen E., Naturgemasse Anordnung der mittel-europaichen Gattungen der Silenoideae, Österr. Bot. Zeitschr. 102: 381-386 (1955). Kubitzki K. & al. (eds.), The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants, vol. Dicotyledons (1993).