The genus Markhamia was named by Berthold Seeman, in honour of his friend Sir Clements Robert Markham (1830 to 1916), English geographer and traveller, who introduced the famous quinine-yielding cinchona into India. Markhamia belongs in the Bignoniaceae family, a large family full of popular garden trees, shrubs and creepers. Garden plants in this family that are very well known to South African gardeners are jacaranda trees and trumpet creepers. Some southern African indigenous plants in this family are Kigelia africana (sausage tree), Tecoma capensis ( Cape honeysuckle), Podranea ricasoliana (Port St Johns creeper) and Rhigozum obovatum. Markhamia has 10 species that occur mainly in tropical Africa. There are two species found in southern Africa, Markhamia zanzibarica and Markhamia obtusifolia.

Markhamia obtusifolia commonly known as Golden Bell-Bean is a South African indigenous species from the Limpopo Province. It is synonymously known as Dolichandra obtusifolia, Dolichandrone obtusifolia, Markhamia lanata, Markhamia paucifoliolata and Markhamia verdickii. It grows into a bushy shrub of one to two meters tall. It has elliptic leaves with woolly undersides. From summer to spring it bears showy bright yellow flowers with reddish streaks.