
Pulinda (Sanskrit: Pulinda) was an ancient tribe of south-central South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The Pulindas were a non-Indo-Aryan tribe.
During the later Vedic period, the Pulindas were living to the south-east of the Daśārṇas.
Though clearly associated with the Vindhyan region, the Pulindas are sometimes believed to have had multiple tribal branches that ranged up to the Himalayan region and Assam. In the Himalayan region, ancient Indian literature often mentions them in conjunction with the Kiratas.
The Rock Edicts of Ashoka (269 BCE - 231 BCE) mention the Pulindas, their capital Pulinda-nagara, and their neighboring tribes, based on which their capital is sometimes located in present-day Jabalpur District of Madhya Pradesh state. Basak identifies them with the hill tribes of the Vindhya and Satpura ranges, more specifically the Bhils.
... The Pulindas were a hill tribe usually connected with the Vindhyan range. Partiger notices several branches of the Pulinda tribe, viz. (1) a western branch, (2) a Himalayan branch related to the Kiratas and Tanganas, and (3) a southern branch ...
... in Rock Edict XIII ... we have to place them somewhere to the north or the north-east of the Andhras ... In the Vayu-Purana, the southern branch of the Pulindas has been placed side by side with the Vindhya-muliyas ... their capital is mentioned as Pulinda-nagara and their kingdom as contiguous with the Chedi country ... the Jubbulpur District ...