Gjest Baardsen (c. 1791 – 13 May 1849) was a Norwegian outlaw, jail-breaker, non-fiction writer, songwriter and memoirist.

Baardsen was born in Sogndalsfjøra, the son of fisherman Baard Gjestsen Fjæren and Maritha Pedersdatter.

After his release from prison in 1845 he earned his living as a songseller and bookseller, married and settled in Bergen.

[1] He wrote a collection of common words in the special sociolect called Fantespråk ("vagabond language"), which was utilized by Eilert Sundt in his studies, and published as Vandrings- eller skøiersprog in 1948.

[4][5] His life has also been the basis for treatments in novels and plays, often based on his autobiography, in which he justified his crimes by claiming that he stole from the rich and wealthy and shared with the poor.