The genus Schistochlamys was introduced in 1850 by the German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach.[1][2] The type species is a subspecies of the cinnamon tanager with the trinomial Schistochlamys ruficapillus capistrata.[3][4][5] The genus name combines the Late Latin schistus meaning "slate" and the Ancient Greek khlamus meaning "mantle" or "cloak".[6]