Nicomachus the Comic Poet (Νικόμαχος ὁ κωμικός) was an Athenian comic poet of the 3rd century BCE, active during the Hellenistic period. He is identified as a poet of Middle Comedy, though his later date also places him within the sphere of New Comedy [1][2]. No specific biographical details survive.

His work is known only through fragments. The 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia, the Suda, records two comedies: Κένταυρος (Kentauros, "The Centaur") and Πανδώρα (Pandōra, "Pandora") [1][2]. Both plays are lost, with only minimal lines preserved by later grammarians like Athenaeus [1].

Nicomachus exemplifies the many comic poets from this era whose works are now fragmentary. His inclusion in the Suda indicates a degree of later remembrance, but his historical significance is limited by the complete loss of his texts. The mythological titles of his comedies suggest themes more characteristic of Middle Comedy [1].

Sources 1. Suda, entry "Nikomachos" (Suda On Line): https://www.cs.uky.edu/~raphael/sol/sol-entries/nu/408 2. Perseus Catalog, entry for "Nicomachus (4)" (Perseus Digital Library): http://catalog.perseus.org/catalog/urn:cite:perseus:author.1059