Ban Chao (32–102 CE), courtesy name Zhongsheng, was a Chinese general, explorer and diplomat of the Eastern Han Dynasty. He was born in Fufeng, now Xianyang, Shaanxi. Three of his family members — father Ban Biao, elder brother Ban Gu, younger sister Ban Zhao — were well known historians who wrote the historical text Book of Han, which recorded the history of the Western Han Dynasty.