1579 in literature

Events

• January 28 – Burmese language poets Nawrahta Minsaw and Hsinbyushin Medaw become king and queen consort of Lanna respectively.
• February – Torquato Tasso arrives in Ferrara. Shortly afterwards he is confined in the Ospedale di Sant'Anna as insane; he remains here until 1586.
• unknown dates – Bible of Kralice begins publication. The first complete translation of the Bible into the Czech language is prepared by the Unity of the Brethren and published at Kralice nad Oslavou in Bohemia.

  New books

• John Frampton
• *A discourse of the Navigation which the Portugales doe Make to the Realmes and Provinces of the East Partes of the Worlde, and of the knowledge that growes by them of the great thinges, which are in the Dominion of China, first English work devoted to China
• *The most noble and famous travels of Marco Polo, first English translation of The Travels of Marco Polo
• Stephen Gosson – The Schoole of Abuse, containing a pleasant invective against Poets, Pipers, Plaiers, Jesters and such like Caterpillars of the Commonwealth
• Martin de Hoyarçabal – Les voyages aventureux du Capitaine Martin de Hoyarsal, habitant du çubiburu
• Thomas Lodge – Honest Excuses
• Thomas North – The Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romanes
• Piotr Skarga – Żywoty świętych

  Poetry

• Edmund Spenser – The Shepheardes Calender

  Births

• February 9 – Johannes Meursius, Dutch classical scholar
• August 1 – Luís Vélez de Guevara, Spanish dramatist and novelist
• August 23 – Thomas Dempster, Scottish Catholic scholar and historian
• September 16 – Samuel Coster, Dutch dramatist
• October 4 – Guido Bentivoglio, Italian statesman and historian
• December 20 – John Fletcher, English dramatist
• Unknown dates
• *Chimalpahin, Aztec historian
• *Arthur Johnston, Scottish poet and physician
• *Johannes Messenius, Swedish historian and dramatist
• *Rhys Prichard, Welsh-language religious poet
• *Francis Rous, English religious writer
• *Walter Yonge of Colyton, English diarist

  Deaths

• March 12 – Alessandro Piccolomini, Italian philosopher
• June 10 – William Whittingham, English Biblical scholar and translator
• November 21 – Cipriano Piccolpasso, Italian poet and author
• Unknown dates
• *Giovanni Battista Adriani, Italian historian
• *Alonso de Molina, Spanish grammarian and lexicographer
• *William Seres, English printer