Pieter de Carpentier was a Dutch administrator of the Dutch East India Company who served as Governor-General there from 1623 to 1627. The Gulf of Carpentaria in northern Australia is named after him.
Pieter de Carpentier was born in Antwerp in 1586, shortly after the fall of the city to the Spaniards. He studied philosophy in Leiden, from 1603. In 1616 he sailed on board the sailing vessel De Getrouwheid to Indonesia. There he had a number of functions, including Director-General of the Trade, Member to the Council of the Indies, and member of the Council of Defence. From 1 February 1623 to 30 September 1627 he was the fifth Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies. He participated in the conquest of Jakarta and helped to build the town of Batavia. He did much for the town, including setting up a school, a Town Hall, and the first Orphanage Home. He also designed the structure of the churches in the town.
On 12 November 1627 Pieter de Carpentier sailed from the East Indies as Head of the Fleet.