The Kinda, or Kindah, (Arabic: كِنْدَة, Ancient South Arabian script: 𐩫𐩬𐩵𐩩) were an Arab tribe from South Arabia. Originating in the region to the west of Hadramawt, the Kinda tribe is known to have served the Sabaean Kingdom as Bedouin auxiliaries as early as the 3rd century, later allying themselves with the Himyarite Kingdom under the Jewish king Dhu Nuwas (early 6th century).

In the mid-5th century, the tribe established its own kingdom over the Arab tribal confederation of Ma'add in northern and central Arabia, known as the Kingdom of Kinda, which lasted until the mid-6th century. By this point its rulers had all been killed or prompted to flee for Hadramawt. There, the bulk of the tribe had continued to reside and dominate. While many of the tribesmen in Hadramawt likely embraced Judaism with the Himyarites, many of those in central and northern Arabia embraced Christianity.

After accepting Islam during the lifetime of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (died 632), their leading families revolted against the early Muslim state during the Ridda wars (632–633). The tribe was dealt a heavy blow, but surviving leaders, such as al-Ash'ath ibn Qays, repented and played important roles in the early Muslim conquests. Members of the Kinda continued to serve in prominent positions throughout the early centuries of the Caliphate.

The Kinda's genealogy, real or perceived, traced them back to the semi-legendary Kahlan, making them, and other South Arabian tribal groups such as the Azd, ethnically distinct from non-Arab South Arabians, such as the Himyar. The name 'Kinda' was a nickname for the tribe's progenitor, Thawr ibn Ufayr. His sons were the progenitors of the Kinda's principle branches, the Banu Mu'awiya, the Sakun and the Sakasik. The latter two are often grouped together in the literary sources as the Ashras group.

The Banu Mu'awiya was the leading branch of the tribe. From its Banu Amr sub-branch descended the royal households of Kinda, namely the Banu Akil al-Murar in Najd and the Yamama in central Arabia (see below) and the Banu Wali'a in the Hadhramawt in southern Arabia. After the advent of Islam, preeminent leadership of the tribe passed to another division of the Banu Mu'awiya, the Banu al-Harith al-Asghar.

Several Sabaean inscriptions mention the Kinda, pronounced "Kdt" in the South Arabian script. The chronology of the inscriptions in not clear, though it is possible the earliest dates to the 3rd century CE. That particular inscription mentions that a king of Kinda named Malik led a tribal confederation, one of whose members, Imru al-Qays ibn Awf, attacked Saba. As a result, Malik and the lesser-ranking chiefs of the confederation were compelled by Saba to surrender Imru al-Qays and provide compensation and hostages from the tribe. In other inscriptions from about the same time, the Kinda are mentioned together with other nomadic Arab groups, including the Madhhij, as being subordinated under a Sabaean officer called "kabir of the Arabs of the king of Saba, and Kinda and Madhhij". According to the historian A. F. L. Beeston, the Kinda and Madhhij were likely auxiliaries to the army of Saba.

The Kinda, as well as Arabs of the Madhhij and Murad confederations, continued their role as nomad auxiliaries under the Himyarite king Dhu Nuwas in the early 6th century CE. Dhu Nuwas placed them under a Sabaean commander from the aristocratic Yaz'an family during campaigns against nomadic tribes in central Arabia. The Kinda in Hadhramawt, likely due to their dependence on the Jewish Himyarites, at least partly adopted Judaism.

In the mid-5th century, part of the Kinda, with support from Himyar, migrated into central and northern Arabia and asserted dominance over the large Arab tribal confederation of Ma'add. The Kindites were led by Hujr, founder of the tribe's royal household, the Banu Akil al-Murar. The subordination of the nomadic tribes of Ma'add to the Banu Akil al-Murar was the initiative of the Ma'add, especially its Bakr division, to bring order to its constantly feuding constituent tribes. The Bakr sent envoys to the king of Himyar, inviting him to be their king. Instead, the king delegated the role to Hujr for unclear reasons.