Peter Theroux is an American writer and translator. He has translated over ten novels from Arabic into English, most notably Abdelrahman Munif's Cities of Salt; Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz's Children of the Alley; and Idris Aly's Dongola, the first Nubian novel to be published in English. His original works include Sandstorms: Days and Nights in Arabia, Translating LA, and The Strange Disappearance of Imam Moussa Sadr. He has worked as a linguist and analyst for the United States government. During the George W. Bush administration, he served as Director of Persian Gulf Affairs on the National Security Council.

He is also a member of the creative Theroux family. Notable members of the Theroux family include his brother Paul, a novelist; his brother Alexander, a novelist; his nephew Louis, a documentary filmmaker; and his nephew Justin, an actor and director.