红花（学名：Carthamus tinctorius）属菊科植物。

红花又称红蓝、黄蓝，菊科红花属。这种花不宜与番红花相混淆。

红花古称“烟支”、“燕支”、“胭脂”等，原产于西域。匈奴人认为妻妾如红花般可爱，因此称之为阏氏。古时胭脂山（今甘肃省永昌县、山丹县之间）盛产红花，汉武帝时大将***夺下曾为匈奴占领的焉支山，使匈奴人“妇女无颜色”。

Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) is a highly branched, herbaceous, thistle-like annual plant. It is commercially cultivated for vegetable oil extracted from the seeds. Plants are 30 to 150 cm (12 to 59 in) tall with globular flower heads having yellow, orange, or red flowers. Each branch will usually have from one to five flower heads containing 15 to 20 seeds per head. Safflower is native to arid environments having seasonal rain. It grows a deep taproot which enables it to thrive in such environments.