Guineafowl (; sometimes called "original fowl" or guineahen) are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to the continent of Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. They are phylogenetically intermediate between peafowl and the Odontophoridae. One Eocene fossil lineage, Telecrex, is represented by the black guineafowl, which is an extant species native to the primary forests of Central Africa. Telecrex that inhabited Mongolia may have given rise to the oldest of the true Tetraophasianids like Ithaginis and Crossoptilon which evolved into high-altitude montane adapted species with the rise of the Tibetan Plateau. While modern guineafowl species are endemic to Africa, the helmeted guineafowl has been introduced widely elsewhere.