Richard Beck (June 9, 1897 – July 20, 1980) was an Icelandic-born American literary historian, author, and poet.

He was for many years a professor of Scandinavian languages and literature at the University of North Dakota and a prominent leader of the Icelandic American community.

His parents, Hans Kjartan Beck and Thorunn Vigfúsina Vigfúsdóttir, lived in Litlu-Breidavik at Reyðarfjörður.

Graduating from high school in Reykjavík in 1920, Beck married Olöf Daníelsdóttir on October 10, 1920.

[1] Throughout his career, Beck published more than fifteen books, including several works of poetry, and more than five hundred articles.

[1] Beck married Bertha Una Samson in Ithaca, New York on April 9, 1925, with whom he had two children.