Cistecephalidae is an extinct family of dicynodont therapsids from the Late Permian of South Africa. It includes the genera Cistecephalus, Cistecephaloides, and Kawingasaurus. Cistecephalids are thought to have had a fossorial or burrowing lifestyle, with adaptations such as broad skulls, strong forelimbs, and squat bodies. A similar group of dicynodonts called the pylaecephalids were also fossorial, although to a lesser extent than cistecephalids. Cistecephalids showed a high level of endemism, with each of the five known species unique to a single region.