The 45-year-old will replace Alan Pardew, who was sacked just two days after a 4-0 win at Bristol Rovers, at St. Mary’s.
Adkins said: “I am delighted to be the manager of Southampton.
“It’s a very proud honour for myself, and Andy Crosby who is joining me as assistant manager, to join a club with such a big tradition.
“I’m very proud to have been given the opportunity by the chairman, Nicola Cortese, and look forward to taking the football club forward.
“I’m really looking forward to this fresh new challenge, and I’m very optimistic of where we can take this football club.
“We want to excite the supporters, because when this stadium is full I am sure there is a fantastic buzz around the place, so I hope the supporters are looking forward to watching their team go out and winning games of football in the right style.”
Southampton chairman Nicola Cortese said: “I am delighted to have been able to appoint Nigel as our new first team manager.
“We were inundated with applications from an impressive range of managers – a far cry from the position we found ourselves in when we last appointed a manager – and Nigel stood out from the start.
“He was at the forefront of my mind throughout the interview process, and the only manager that we offered the job to, so I am extremely happy that both Nigel and Andy have agreed to join us.”
