ali

name

1. A male given name from Arabic.
2. The Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib, considered by Shias to be Muhammad's first successor (imam).
3. A surname from Arabic.
4. A diminutive of the female given name Alison or of its variants.
5. A diminutive of the male given name Alistair or of its variants.
6. Synonym of Ngari: the Mandarin Chinese-derived name.

   “The Ngari area is now known as the Ali Prefecture of the TAR. Commonly called Ali, the Chinese-built town of Shiquanhe is the administrative center of the area.[…] Although the area of Ali Prefecture is around the same size as Italy or the state of Arizona (300,000 sq km), it is dominated by the barren Changthang Plateau and is sparsely populated with only approximately 70,000 people.”

   “Liu cursed the lifeless wasteland around them. This wasn't another planet, it was Ali prefecture, Tibet. Altitude: 4,500 metres. And these astronomers were on a mission.”

   “The Ali Cosmic Microwave Background Polarisation Telescope (AliCPT), perched at 5,250 metres (17,220 ft) in Tibet’s remote Ali prefecture, was finished this month after eight years of construction involving 16 institutions worldwide, including Stanford University, according to state broadcaster CCTV.”