Nukus, city, southwestern Uzbekistan, capital of the Qoragalpoghiston republic. It lies near the head of the Amu Darya (river) delta. The tiny Nukus settlement, which lay amid the desert sands, was established as a city in 1932 and in 1939 replaced Trutkul (which was being eroded by the Amu Darya) as capital of the Kara-Kalpak A.S.S.R. (now Qoragalpoghiston). The present city has a number of food-processing and other light industries, the Qoragalpoghiston branch of the Uzbek Academy of Sciences, Nukus State University (1979), a museum, and a theatre. Pop. (2007 est.) 240,734.