The Altai Mountains (/ ɑː l ˈ t aɪ /), also spelled Altay Mountains, are a mountain range in Central and East Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan converge, and where the rivers Irtysh and Ob have their headwaters. The massif merges with the Sayan Mountains in the northeast, and gradually becomes lower in the southeast, where it merges into the high plateau …

The Altaians are represented by two ethnographic groups: The Southern Altaians, who speak the Southern Altai language with its dialects, include the Altai-Kizhi, the Teleuts, the Telengits, and used to include the Telesy who are now assimilated within the Telengits.; The Northern Altaians, who speak the Northern Altai language and dialects, include the Chelkans, the Kumandins and …