Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi , also known as
Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi ,
Mawlana/
Mevlânâ (, "our master"),
Mevlevî/
Mawlawi (, "my master"), and more popularly simply as
Rumi (1207 – 17 December 1273), was a 13th-century
Persian poet, jurist,
Islamic scholar, theologian, and
Sufi mystic. Rumi's influence transcends national borders and ethnic divisions:
Iranians,
Tajiks,
Turks,
Greeks,
Pashtuns, other
Central Asian Muslims, and the Muslims of
South Asia have greatly appreciated his spiritual legacy for the past seven centuries. His poems have been widely translated into many of the world's languages and transposed into various formats. Rumi has been described as the "most popular poet" and the "best selling poet" in the United States.