William Helmuth Heyen (born November 1, 1940) is an American poet, editor, and literary critic.

He spent the 1971–1972 academic year as a Senior Fulbright Lecturer in American literature at the University of Hanover in what was then West Germany. During this time, he visited a number of sites involved in the Holocaust. These experiences, combined with his own family history (including an uncle who served in the German army), resulted in three volumes of poetry on the subject published over the next 32 years. He has been awarded NEA, Guggenheim, American Academy & Institute of Arts & Letters, and other prizes.