Cynewulf (flourished ad750), Anglo-Saxon poet, possibly a Northumbrian minstrel. In his poetry, he is revealed as a man of learning familiar with the religious literature of his day. Of the works attributed to him, scholars generally agree that four are unquestionably his. These are religious works in Old English entitled Ascension, The Fates of the Apostles, Juliana, and Elene; the latter two are legends about saints. Other works attributed to Cynewulf include Christ, a three-part work of which Ascension forms the second part, and The Dream of the Rood. With Caedmon, he was one of the earliest English Christian poets.