Summary The NPR proteins function as salicylic acid (SA) receptors in Arabidopsis thaliana . AtNPR1 plays a central role in SA‐induced transcriptional reprogramming whereby positively regulates SA‐mediated defense. NPRs are found in the genomes of nearly all land plants. However, we know little about the molecular functions and physiological roles of NPRs in most plant species. We conducted phylogenetic and alignment analyses of NPRs from 68 species covering the significant lineages of land plants. To investigate NPR functions in bryophyte lineages, we generated and characterized NPR loss‐of‐function mutants in the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha . Brassicaceae NPR1‐like proteins have characteristically gained or lost functional residues identified in AtNPRs, pointing to the possibility of a unique evolutionary trajectory for the Brassicaceae NPR1‐like proteins. We find that the only NPR in M. polymorpha , MpNPR, is not the master regulator of SA‐induced transcriptional reprogramming and negatively regulates bacterial resistance in this species. The Mp npr transcriptome suggested roles of MpNPR in heat and far‐red light responses. We identify both Mp npr and At npr1‐1 display enhanced thermomorphogenesis. Interspecies complementation analysis indicated that the molecular properties of AtNPR1 and MpNPR are partially conserved. We further show that MpNPR has SA‐binding activity. NPRs and NPR‐associated pathways have evolved distinctively in diverged land plant lineages to cope with different terrestrial environments.

Contrasting and conserved roles of NPR pathways in diverged land plant lineages