this species was first described by hinrich lichtenstein in 1817 as "ixia tortuosa". in 1827, john bellenden ker gawler thought it better placed in "trichonema", while john gilbert baker created the new combination "romulea tortuosa" in 1877, which was not supported by otto kuntze, who moved it to the genus "bulbocodium" in 1891. friedrich wilhelm klatt described another specimen in 1882, calling it "romulea tridentifera", but this name is now considered to be synonymous to "r. tortuosa".