A list of 2510 vascular plant family names is provided, valid and not validly published as well as legitimate and not legitimate. Each entry has a full bibliographic reference, nomenclatural status, generic type (when based on a generic name), means of validation, original place of publication for pre-1789 works, isonyms, invalid names proposed prior to a name's validation, first use of correct orthography (if not given in the original publication), first uses of other orthographic variations, divisional placements of typified names, indication of acceptance in the botanical literature after 1960, and a four-letter abbreviation for the legitimate family name. In addition, nomenclaturally correct, typified names are listed for the ranks of order, superorder, subclass, class, subdivision, division/phylum, and subkingdom (for a total of 753 names), with full bibliographic citations. A similar list of 1569 currently available extant vascular plant family names is also given, of which 960 are considered to be in “current use.” A starting date for all names is assumed to be 4 August 1789 (Jussieu, Genera plantarum). Current difficulties with family nomenclature, and potential changes to bibliographic citations as a result of recently proposed changes to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature, are noted.