Nikolai Alekseevich Severtzov (5 November 1827 – 8 February 1885) was a Russian explorer and naturalist. Severtzov studied at the Moscow University and at the age of eighteen he came into contact with G. S. Karelin and took an interest in central Asia. In 1857, he joined a mission to Syr-Darya. On the expedition to the Syr Darya, he was captured by bandits and freed after a month. In 1865–68, he explored the Tian Shan mountains and Lake Issyk Kul. In 1877–78, he explored the Pamir Mountains, following a route close to the current Pamir Highway as far as Lake Yashil Kul on the Ghunt River.