The Nicholas Range (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: سلسله کوه نیکلاس), known locally as Selselehi-i Koh-i-Wakhan (

Dari Dari (; endonym: ), Dari Persian (, , or , ), or Eastern Persian is the variety of the Persian language spoken in Afghanistan. Dari is the Afghan government's official term for the Persian language;Lazard, G.Darī – The New Persian ...

: سلسله کوه واخان/

Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...

: د واخان د غرونو لړۍ) is a range of mountains in the

Pamir Mountains The Pamir Mountains are a Mountain range, range of mountains between Central Asia and South Asia. They are located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun Mountains, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya ...

on the border of Afghanistan and

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

that crosses the

Wakhan Wakhan, or "the Wakhan" (also spelt Vakhan; Persian and , ''Vâxân'' and ''Wāxān'' respectively; , ''Vaxon''), is a rugged, mountainous part of the Pamir, Hindu Kush and Karakoram regions of Afghanistan. Wakhan District is a district in ...

in Afghanistan.

Ludwig W. Adamec Ludwig W. Adamec (10 March 1924 – 1 January 2019) was an Austrian scholar on the Middle East and Afghanistan. He was a professor emeritus in the School of Middle East and North African Studies at the University of Arizona.

. Historical and political gazetteer of Afghanistan Vol. 1. Badakhshan Province and northeastern Afghanistan.

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

: Akad. Druck- und Verl.-Anst., 1972.p. 128.Wakhan Afghanistan and Tajikistan
/ref> The range separates the

Little Pamir The Little Pamir ( Wakhi: ''Wuch Pamir''; Kyrgyz: ''Kichik Pamir''; ) is a broad U-shaped grassy valley or '' pamir'' in the eastern part of the Wakhan in north-eastern Afghanistan. The valley is 100 km long and 10 km wide, and is bou ...

and

Great Pamir The Great Pamir or Big Pamir is a U-shaped, grassy valley (or pamir) forming the eastern part of the Wakhan Corridor in northeastern Afghanistan, in the Pamir Mountains. The area is home to a diverse range of animals and has traditionally been u ...

in the Wakhan. The area is sparsely populated by Wakhi and Kyrgyz. The range has peaks that rise 5500 to 5800 metres (18,000 to 19,000 ft) elevation. The range is about in length. The Afghan-Tajik border follows the crest of the eastern half of the range. The range was given the title ''Nicholas Range'' during the joint

Russo Russo may refer to: * Russo (surname) * Russo (footballer, 1915–1980), full name Adolpho Milman, Brazilian football forward and manager * Russo (footballer, born 1976), full name Ricardo Soares Florêncio, Brazilian football defender * Russo brot ...

-British Pamir Boundary Commission of 1895 that delineated the border between Russian and Afghan territory. In exchange for a British agreement to use the term ''Nicholas Range,'' in honour of Emperor

Nicholas II of Russia Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until Abdication of Nicholas II, hi ...

, on official maps, the Russians agreed to refer to Lake Zorkul as ''Lake Victoria'' in honor of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

of the United Kingdom.Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Kashmir, Chitral, Gilgit, Pamirs and North-West Frontier: Summary of Diary for August 1895. p. 4. Public Record Office. Russia.Proceedings in Central Asia 1873-1898. F.O. 65/1507."Enclosure No. 8. No. 179, dated Lake Victoria, 28 July 1895 (Confidential). From Major-General M. G. Gerard, C. B. To the Secretary to the Government of India, Foreign Department." Record Office. Russia. Proceedings in Central Asia 1873-1898. PRO/FO 65/1506. pp. 336-337.

References

Mountain ranges of Afghanistan Mountain ranges of Tajikistan Afghanistan–Tajikistan border Pamir Mountains Wakhan {{Tajikistan-geo-stub

Further reading

References