Alastair Neil Robertson Niven was an English literary scholar and author. He wrote books on D. H. Lawrence, Raja Rao, and Mulk Raj Anand, and over the years served as Director General of The Africa Centre, Director of Literature at the Arts Council of Great Britain and of the British Council, a principal of Cumberland Lodge, and president of English PEN. In 2021, Niven was chosen as the recipient of the Benson Medal from the Royal Society of Literature, awarded for exceptional contribution to literature.