Athir al-Din Akhsikati (Persian: اثیرالدین اخسیکتی; 1126–8 – 1211/12) was an Iranian writer, whose ghazals in Persian played an important role in the development of the genre. A native of Akhsikath in Central Asia, Athir al-Din first started his career at the court of Herat, under the service of the Seljuk sultan Ahmad Sanjar (r. 1118–1157). Following the latter's death, Athir al-Din went to western Iran, where he stayed at the courts of Hamadan and Tabriz. During this period he is known to have served under the Seljuk sultans of Persian Iraq, the Eldiguzids, and a local dynast, Ala al-Dawla Fakhr al-Din Arab Shah.