Igor Mikhailovich Diakonoff (Russian: И́горь Миха́йлович Дья́конов; 12 January 1915 – 2 May 1999) was a Russian historian, linguist, and translator and a renowned expert on the Ancient Near East and its languages. His last name is occasionally spelled Diakonov. (a better transliteration, since Russian family names do not end in -ff) His brothers were also distinguished historians.