The species was originally named by German naturalist and taxonomist Johann Julius Walbaum in 1792 based on type specimens from the Kamchatka Peninsula in Siberia. The scientific name of the Dolly Varden is Salvelinus malma. It is considered by taxonomists as part of the Salvelinus alpinus or Arctic char complex, as many populations of bull trout, Dolly Varden trout and Arctic char overlap.

Although many populations are semi- anadromous, fluvial and lacustrine populations occur throughout its range. It belongs to the genus Salvelinus, or true chars, which includes 51 recognized species, the most prominent being the brook, lake and bull trout, as well as Arctic char. The Dolly Varden trout ( Salvelinus malma) is a species of salmonid fish native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. Salmo malma Walbaum, 1792 Salvelinus alpinus malma (Walbaum, 1792) Salvelinus malma malma (Walbaum, 1792) Salmo spectabilis Girard, 1856 Salvelinus malma spectabilis (Girard, 1856) Salvelinus spectabilis (Girard, 1856) Salmo bairdii Suckley, 1861 Salvelinus bairdii (Suckley, 1861) Salmo parkei Suckley, 1861 Salvelinus parkei (Suckley, 1861) Salmo parkii Suckley, 1861 Salmo lordii Günther, 1866 Fario lordii (Günther, 1866) Salmo tudes (Cope, 1873) Salvelinus malma tudes (Cope, 1873) Salvelinus miyabei (Oshima, 1938) Salvelinus malma miyabei (Oshima, 1938) Salvelinus namaycush (non Walbaum, 1792) Salmo fariopsis (non Kner, 1870) Salvelinus malma krascheninnikova (non Taranetz, 1933).

Fishing planet dolly varden alaska