Azkaban is the magical prison in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter universe.
Azkaban is located on an island in the North Sea and is guarded by Dementors for much of the series. These creatures drain happiness and can leave prisoners in a deeply weakened mental state. The prison is controlled by the British wizarding government, the Ministry of Magic.
The name is first encountered in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, when Hagrid mentions that Sirius Black escaped from the prison. Later books reveal more about its notorious inmates and the prison’s connection with the history of the wizarding world.
Azkaban is not the same as Nurmengard. Nurmengard was built by the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald to imprison his enemies and later became his own prison. The two locations are both associated with powerful dark wizards, which can lead to confusion.