Jochem van Bruggen (1881–1957) was an Afrikaans author and the first winner of the Hertzog Prize for prose for his work Teleurgestel ("Disappointed") in 1917.

He was part of the Second Afrikaans Language Movement and is best known for Ampie, a series about poor and destitute Afrikaners in South Africa during the Depression of 1920–1921.

Jochem and his mother, brothers and sisters arrived in Cape Town on New Year's Day 1893 and the family settled in Johannesburg.

He initially attended his father's school, followed by the Nederlandstalige Staatsgymnasium in Pretoria, where Nico Hofmeyr, an author and lecturer in History and Dutch, had a great influence on him.

After the capture of Johannesburg, he first worked for a meager income at an agent's office and shortly after the peace agreement for a slightly better salary at a laundry.

During the Depression, he took his plays on tour throughout the country to try to supplement his income, but the problems exceeded the opportunities and instead of the expected profits, he incurred further losses.

The societies petered out frequently, but were then reestablished by Van Bruggen, until they merged into the Magaliesburg Cultural Association in the 1940s, under independent management.

He published ten poems in total, alongside a number of Dutch prose pieces, including his mocking description of the heroic actions of the Johannesburgers during the Jameson Raid.