The Phedina species are members of the swallow family of birds, and are classed as members of the Hirundininae subfamily, which comprises all swallows and martins except the very distinctive river martins.
The genus Phedina is thought to be an early offshoot from the main swallow lineage, although the striped plumage of its two species suggests a distant relationship with several streaked African Hirundo species [REF].