<p>This review of world literature presents the current taxonomy, zoogeography, and toxinology of the most dangerous and venomous snakes of the genus <i>Naja</i> (true cobras), including questions on the origin, distribution, and mechanism of the toxic effect in the ecological group of “spitting” cobras. Cobras are among the most well-known snakes in the world; however, until the end of the 20th century, the taxonomy of cobras remained surprisingly poorly studied. The application of molecular phylogenetic research methods led to the “Afro-Asian diversity race”: an increase in the number of recognized African and Asian cobra species, which required the introduction of the subgenus rank, a truly “revolutionary” development in herpetology, while maintaining the nomenclatural stability of the group of iconic species. Questions of cobra taxonomy have both important theoretical and practical aspects (medical and zootoxinological). An incomplete (or questionable) understanding of the taxonomic position of a species can lead to dramatic errors in the treatment of snake venom poisonings, and most often to the incorrect use of monovalent antivenoms, since closely related and very similar snake species can often have venoms that differ in composition and, therefore, in their mechanism of action. Cobras are primarily venomous, armed, and actively venomous animals, which facilitates flexible adaptation to their environment. Therefore, examining the current state of research on the unique set of polypeptide toxins in cobra venom, which serve as chemical factors (allomones) for interspecies (allelochemical) interactions, is of significant theoretical and practical importance. Similar examples can be found among animals of many taxonomic groups, but cobras possess a remarkable balance between various hunting and defense mechanisms using their venom apparatus, which is parenteral administration of venom during a bite and ejection (“spitting”) during remote contact.</p>