Nalchik (Russian: На́льчик; IPA: [ˈnalʲtɕɪk]; Kabardian: Налшык; Balkar: Нальчик) is the capital city of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic, Russia, situated at an altitude of 550 meters (1,800 ft) in the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains; about 100 kilometers (62 mi) northwest of Beslan in the Republic of North Ossetia–Alania. It covers an area of 131 square kilometers (51 sq mi). Population: 240,095 (2010 Census preliminary results); 274,974 (2002 Census); 234,547 (1989 Census).

The territory of modern-day Nalchik was inhabited by native Balkars and Kabardians as far back as 1743, but the modern city dates from the early 19th century when the expanding Russian Empire built a fort there in 1818; this date is seen at the top of the city's coat of arms. A military settlement was founded on the site in 1838. Nalchik remained relatively unimportant until after the Russian Revolution of 1917, when it was given the status of a city in 1921. It was promoted to become the administrative center of the Kabardian autonomous oblast.