Position in a system
| system | Vitae - living organisms |
| domain | Eukaryota Whittaker & Margulis, 1978 - lifeforms with nucletic cells |
| superregnum | Bikonta - bikonts |
| Corticata | |
| Archaeplastida | |
| kingdom | Plantae Haeckel - plants |
| divisio | Cycadophyta Bessey |
| class | Cycadopsida Brong - cycads |
| subclass | Zamiidae Doweld |
| order | Zamiales Burnett |
| family | Zamiaceae Horan. |
| subfamily | Encephalartoideae |
| tribus | Encephalarteae |
| subtribus | Encephalartinae |
| genus | Encephalartos Lehm. |
| species | Encephalartos ferox G. Bertol. - Zululand Cycad |
| subspecies | Encephalartos ferox subsp. emersus P.Rousseau, Vorster & A.E.van Wyk |