A near-field polarized-light measurement apparatus 10 comprises a near-field probe 14, an analyzer 18, a detector 22, and an analyzer-rotating unit 20. The near-field probe 14 has at a tip thereof an opening smaller than the wavelength of light used for measurement and generates linearly polarized near-field light from the opening and irradiates a sample with the near-field light. The detector 22 detects light transmitted through the sample via the analyzer 18. The analyzer-rotating unit 20 rotates the analyzer 18 about an optical axis to vary the angle of a transmission axis thereof. And optical rotation of the sample is measured by rotating the analyzer 18 with the analyzer-rotating unit 20.