- This article is about the Scottish poet, for other people of this name see William Dunbar (disambiguation).
William Dunbar (born 1459 or 1460) was a
Scottish makar poet active in the late fifteenth century and the early sixteenth century. He was closely associated with the court of
King James IV and produced a large body of work in
Scots distinguished by its great variation in themes and literary styles. He was likely a native of
East Lothian, as assumed from a satirical reference in the
Flyting of Dunbar and Kennedie. His surname is also spelled
Dumbar.