Nishada () is a tribe mentioned in ancient Indian literature (such as the epic Mahabharata). The ancient texts mention several kingdoms ruled by this tribe. In the Mahabharata, the Nishadas are described as hunters, fishermen, mountaineers or raiders that have the hills and the forests as their abode. They are linked with a king called Vena who became a slave to wrath and malice, and became unrighteous. Sages killed him for his malice and wrongdoings. In the epic Valmiki Ramayan there is a character named Guha who is from the Nishada clan, whom the central character of the epic Sri Ramchandra called him 'aatmasamam' which literally means equal to his soul or among the best friends (Ramayan 2.50.33). There we also find praises of the Nishad community by the central character Shri Ramchandra for the contribution of Nishad community leader Guha in the internal and external security of the Ayodhya Kingdom (Ramayan 2.52.72). Ekalavya was an archer of a Nishada tribe. Identity In the earliest of the Indo-Aryan texts, the term "Nishada" may have been used as a generic term for all indigenous non-Aryan tribes rather than a single tribe. This is suggested by the fact that according to Yaska's Nirukta, Aupamanyava explains the Rigveda term "pancha-janah" ("five peoples") as the four varnas of the Indo-Aryan society and the Nishadas. Linguist S. K. Chatterji notes that the Nishadas appear to be different from the Dasas and the Dasyus, which are the other non-Aryan people mentioned in the Vedic texts. Historian Ramaprasad Chanda identifies the Nishadas as the original speakers of the Munda languages. N. K. Dutt also identifies with them pre-Dravidian peoples of India, who presumably spoke a language belonging to the Austroasiatic family, the parent family of the Munda languages. The Nishadas are sometimes confused with the Nisadhas (IAST: Niṣādha), who were a distinct, Indo-Aryan tribe. Physical appearance The Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata describes the Nishadas having dark skin colour similar to that of charred wood, black hair, blood red-coloured eyes, and short limbs. The later texts such as the Vishnu Purana and the Vayu Purana also emphasize the dark skin colour of the Nishadas. The Bhagavata Purana mentions the Nishadas as having copper-coloured hair, high cheekbones, and low-tipped nose. Occupation Various ancient texts associate the Nishadas with hunting and fishing. Nishadas are presented as hunters in the Bala Kanda of the Ramayana, Utpala's 8th century commentary on