Zhigansk (Russian: Жига́нск; Yakut: Эдьигээн, romanized: Ecigên) is a rural locality (a selo) and the administrative center of Zhigansky District in the Sakha Republic, Russia, located on the left bank of the Lena River near where it is joined by its tributary the Nuora (Strekalovka), approximately 600 kilometers (370 mi) northwest of Yakutsk, the capital of the republic.

[citation needed] In 1783, Zhigansk was granted town status and made the seat of a newly created uyezd within Yakutsk Oblast.

[citation needed] It lost this function in 1805 with the dissolution of the uyezd, but remained the most northerly town on the Lena until 1917, when it was demoted to rural status.

[8] There is no year-round road access to Zhigansk, but during the summer months, Yakutsk is reachable via boat on the Lena.

Despite having an extreme subarctic climate, the town is not quite as cold in winter as some towns with a similar climate, such as Verkhoyansk or Oymyakon, both of which are located further east in deep valleys where perpetual temperature inversions occur during the winter.