[1][2] The genus was named after William Brass, a British botanist and illustrator, who collected plants in Africa under the supervision of Sir Joseph Banks.

The grex Eternal Wind is a recipient of the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

[4] This epiphytic genus occurs in wet forests from sea level to altitudes under 1500 m, with the Peruvian Andes as its center of diversity.

They have large elliptic-oblong pseudobulbs with one or two leaves at the apex, lateral, unbranched many-flowered inflorescences with small floral bracts.

As of August 2023[update], Plants of the World Online accepted the following species:[1] This list does not include nothogenera based on genera that are synonyms of Oncidium, as for instance Cochlioda and Odontoglossum.