tonijo
Which is the most famous poem?

Absolute measures of 'fame' are always difficult. If you go by the most basic "the number of people that are aware of it", then you have the best chance of answering the question.

Then you have to decide what you are including under "poem". Psalms from the Bible? Nursery Rhymes? If you include these then maybe something like Psalm 23?

Then again, in other cultures you have very ancient works like the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayam, which given its age could easily be the most famous.

Sorry, I can't be more definitive, but hopefully that will lead you to what you are trying to find out.

Well, "if politics are a necessity, poetry is a need" - Alekos Panagulis.
Poems are the bricks of a civilisation, and their importance changes along the times.
If I had to choose, I would rather opt for the two Omeric poems, "Iliad" and "Odyssey", for their founding value in Western civilization.

Interesting question! I suspect that if you asked anyone in Britain to quote a line of poetry, many of them would say "The boy stood on the burning deck", or perhaps "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?" or "Twas the night before Christmas" but I wonder how many people could quote the following lines?

In 2005, BBC TV conducted a nationwide search to find Britain's favourite poem and the clear winner was Rudyard Kipling's "If"