Freiherr Samuel von Pufendorf (January 8, 1632 – October 13, 1694) is a German jurist, political philosopher, economist and historian.

He was born Samuel Pufendorf and ennobled in 1684; he is made a baron by Charles XI of Sweden a few months before his death at age sixty-two.

Among his achievements are his commentaries and revisions of the natural law theories of Thomas Hobbes and Hugo Grotius.

Pufendorf is familiar to American political writers such as Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson.

His political concepts are part of the cultural background of the American Revolution.

Pufendorf is seen as an important precursor of Enlightenment in Germany.

He is involved in constant quarrels with clerical circles and frequently has to defend himself against accusations of heresy, despite holding largely traditional Christian views on matters of dogma and doctrine.