Benjamin Jonson (c. 11 June 1572 – 6 August 1637) is an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor.

A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, and his lyric poems.

A man of vast reading and a seemingly insatiable appetite for controversy, Jonson has an unparalleled breadth of influence on Jacobean and Caroline playwrights and poets.