Rumi, born Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī, was a 13th-century poet, Hanafi faqih (jurist), Islamic scholar, Maturidi theologian, and Sufi mystic originally from Greater Khorasan in Greater Iran. His works were primarily written in Persian, with occasional use of Turkish, Arabic, and Greek.

His masterpiece, the Masnavi (Mathnawi), composed in Konya, is one of the greatest poems of the Persian language. Rumi's influence has transcended national borders and ethnic divisions, greatly appreciated by Iranians, Afghans, Tajiks, Turks, Kurds, Greeks, Central Asian Muslims, and Muslims of the Indian subcontinent for centuries.

Rumi's poetry has also influenced the literary traditions of Ottoman Turkish, Chagatai, Pashto, Kurdish, Urdu, and Bengali languages. Described as the "most popular poet," Rumi is widely read in his original language across Greater Iran and the Persian-speaking world. His poems, translated into many languages, have made him the "best selling poet" in the United States.