The straw-headed bulbul is prized for its singing ability and is a highly sought-after species by bird enthusiasts in Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia.

[4] The straw-headed bulbul was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae.

[5] Gmelin based his description on the "Ceylonese stare" that had been described in 1783 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his book A General Synopsis of Birds.

[6] The English name chosen by Latham and Gmelin's specific epithet were both based on the mistakenly belief that the species was found in Sri Lanka.

[8][9] The straw-headed bulbul is now one of 32 species placed in the genus Pycnonotus that was introduced in 1826 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie.