Marcus Cornelius Fronto was a Roman orator and rhetorician of the 2nd century CE, born in Cirta, Numidia. He rose to prominence in Rome, where he was appointed tutor in rhetoric to the future emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. His close relationship with Marcus Aurelius is documented in their extensive correspondence. Fronto was celebrated for his archaizing Latin style, which favored obsolete vocabulary, and he served as suffect consul in 142 CE.

Fronto’s works, lost after the 6th century, were rediscovered in a palimpsest manuscript in the 19th century. The surviving corpus consists primarily of his correspondence with Marcus Aurelius and others, which is his most significant work. It also includes rhetorical treatises such as De orationibus and De eloquentia, the exercise Laudes fumi et pulveris, the declamation Arion, and fragments of his orations.

Fronto is historically significant for the intimate view his correspondence provides of the Antonine court and the pedagogical values of the era. He was the central proponent of an archaizing movement in Latin literature, advocating a return to pre-Ciceronian style. His rediscovery after a millennium of obscurity greatly amplified his importance.