The genus name Cyrtanthus is derived from the Greek kyrtos (curved), and anthos (flower), with reference to the curved perianth, seen in certain members of the genus. The Latin specific name elatus describes the elevated manner in which the flower head is held well above the leaves.

The Swede, C.P. Thunberg, and the Scot, Francis Masson, first recorded a red form of this species in the Outeniqua Mountains north of Mossel Bay, in late 1773, and it was introduced into cultivation at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, by Masson, in 1774. In 1782, Linnaeus the Younger described it as Crinum speciosum, a name ultimately placed in synonymy, and in 1797, the Dutch-born scientist, Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin, described and illustrated it as Amaryllis elata in volume 1 of Plantarum rariorum horti caesarei Schoenbrunnensis descriptions et icones, from plants grown at the Imperial Gardens near Vienna. An earlier painting had, however, been done by the Dutch naturalist Robert Gordon, either before, or during, one of his four expeditions to the Cape, between 1777 and 1786, and is housed in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The plant subsequently became known under many names, including Amaryllis speciosa  and Amaryllis purpurea, both in 1789, and in 1821, the British botanist William Herbert established the genus Vallota especially for it, naming it V. purpurea, following which it became Vallota speciosa in 1894. In 1963 it became Cyrtanthus purpureus, and its current name (Cyrtanthus elatus), was finally adopted for it by the American botanist, H.P. Traub, in the journal Plant Life, in 1969. However, the plant is still generally known as Vallota purpurea or V. speciosa in the horticultural trade. Among several vernacular names, it became popularly known as the Scarborough lily, although it is not precisely known how this came about. The plant has the largest flowers of all Cyrtanthus species, and has been in continuous cultivation for almost two-and-a-half centuries, as an indoor plant in cold climates, and as a patio and bedding subject in temperate parts.

With well over 50 members, Cyrtanthus is the most species-rich genus of the southern African Amaryllidaceae. It is concentrated in South Africa in the southeastern part of the Eastern Cape. C. breviflorus, the yellow fire-lily, is the most widespread one, occurring from the Eastern Cape to East Africa, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. C. elatus is the most important member in world horticulture, both as a container plant, and, to a lesser extent, as a cut flower. It is also an excellent parent in the development of hybrids, notably with C. montanus. A number of other cyrtanthus are widely grown as container and bedding plants, including C. brachyscyphus, C. mackenii and C. sanguineus.