Dalbergia is a large genus of small to medium-size trees, shrubs and lianas in the pea family, Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae.

[2][3][4] The genus has a wide distribution, native to the tropical regions of Central and South America, Africa, Madagascar and Southern Asia.

[5] Fossils of †Dalbergia nostratum have been found in rhyodacite tuff of Lower Miocene age in Southern Slovakia near the town of Lučenec.

[7] †Dalbergia lucida fossils have been described from the Xiaolongtan Formation of late Miocene age in Kaiyuan County, Yunnan Province, China.

[8] Many species of Dalbergia are important timber trees, valued for their decorative and often fragrant wood, rich in aromatic oils.

It is most often used in crossbanding and other veneers; it should not be confused with the "tulipwood" of the American tulip tree Liriodendron tulipifera, used in inexpensive cabinetwork.