Jain literature (Sanskrit: जैन साहित्य) refers to the literature of the Jain religion. It is a vast and ancient literary tradition, which was initially transmitted orally. The oldest surviving material is contained in the canonical Jain Agamas, which are written in Ardhamagadhi, a Prakrit (Middle-Indo Aryan) language. Various commentaries were written on these canonical texts by later Jain monks. Later works were also written in other languages, like Sanskrit and Maharashtri Prakrit.

Jain literature is primarily divided between the canons of the Digambara and Śvētāmbara orders. These two main sects of Jainism do not always agree on which texts should be considered authoritative.

More recent Jain literature has also been written in other languages, like Marathi, Tamil, Rajasthani, Dhundari, Marwari, Hindi, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam and more recently in English.

Jains believe their religion is eternal, and the teachings of the first tīrthaṅkara, Ṛṣabhanātha, existed millions of years ago.

It states that the tīrthaṅkaras taught in divine preaching halls called samavasarana and were heard by gods, ascetics, and laypersons. These divine discourses were called śrutajñāna or empirical knowledge. They comprised eleven angas and fourteen purvas, The discourses are remembered and transmitted by the ganadharas or chief disciples, and is composed of twelve angas (parts, limbs). It is symbolically represented by a tree with twelve branches. The spoken scriptural language is believed to be Magadhi Prakrit by Śvetāmbara Jains, and a form of divine sound or sonic resonance by Digambaras.

According to the Jain tradition, the divine śrutajñāna or empirical knowledge of a tīrthaṅkara is then converted into a sutta or scripture by disciples, and from such suttas emerge the formal canons. The suttas are grouped into "twelve-limbed baskets," which are transmitted orally by the disciples. In every universal cycle of Jain cosmology, twenty-four tīrthaṅkaras appear, and so do the Jain scriptures for that cycle.

Initially, the canonical scriptures were transmitted through an oral tradition and consisted of teachings of historical Jain leaders like Mahavira codified into various collections. Gautama and other Gandhars (the chief disciples of Mahavira) are said to have compiled the original sacred scriptures which were divided into twelve Angas or parts. They are referred to as the eleven Angas and the fourteen Pūrvas, since the twelfth Anga comprises fourteen Pūrvas. These scriptures are said to have contained the most comprehensive and accurate description of every branch of Jain learning. The Jain Agamas and their commentaries were composed mainly in Ardhamagadhi Prakrit as well as in Maharashtri Prakrit.

While some authors date the composition of the Jain Agamas starting from the 6th century BCE, some western scholars, such as Ian Whicher and David Carpenter, argue that the earliest portions of Jain canonical works were composed around the 4th or 3rd century BCE. According to Johannes Bronkhorst it is extremely difficult to determine the age of the Jain Agamas, however: