Altai

¹ American  

[al-tahy, uhl-tahy] / ˈæl taɪ, ʌlˈtaɪ /

Or Altay

noun

1. a territory of the Russian Federation in central Asia. 101,000 sq. mi. (261,700 sq. km). Barnaul.

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Altai ² American  

[al-tahy] / ˈæl taɪ /

noun

plural

Altais,

plural

Altai

1. a member of a grouping of peoples living mainly in the Gorno-Altai Autonomous Region of the Russian Federation.

2. the Turkic language of the Altai.

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Example Sentences

The Pazyryk "ice mummies" were found inside ice tombs in the Altai mountains in Siberia in the 19th century, but it has been difficult to see the tattoos.

From BBC • Jul. 30, 2025

Birch trees, however, grow commonly in the Mongolian Altai, suggesting that locals had crafted the saddle themselves, not traded for it.

From Science Daily • Dec. 12, 2023

And as a more ancient example, genetic analyses have revealed that women migrated 54,000 years ago in clans of Neandertals in the Altai Mountains in Central Asia.

From Scientific American • Aug. 10, 2023

Yulia Alyoshina had planned to represent the opposition Civil Initiative party at the polls in southern Siberia’s Altai region in September, when it will elect a new governor.

From Washington Times • Jul. 10, 2023

The bald man, who had been charting our progress from the city markers called from the window slot, guessed we were somewhere in the Altai region, just north of China.

From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys