Don Lee Fred Nilsen (born October 19, 1934) is an American linguist and humor scholar.

[2][3] Alongside Alleen Nilsen, he was also co-president of American Name Society.

[4] Don Lee Fred Nilsen was born in 1934 in Palmyra, Utah, United States.

[6] Don Nilsen's areas of interest in English Linguistics include Semantics, Pragmatics, and Discourse Theory.

[7] In 2014, the Association of Applied and Therapeutic Humor named Don and Alleen Nilsen recipients of the Doug Fletcher Lifetime Achievement Award for their significant contribution to the understanding and application of humor.