The New International Encyclopædia/Alatau

ALATAU, ä′lȧ-tou′ (Turk., Mottled Mountain Range). A name given to a range of lofty mountains forming the boundary between Turkestan and Mongolia and the northern limit of the great tableland of Central Asia (Map: Asia, G 4). It is made up of three sierra-like subranges, the Dzungarian, the Trans-Ili, and the Kuznets Alatau. These are all grouped around Lake Issik-Kul as a central point. The peaks of the Alatau, which are principally of granitic formation, attain an elevation of over 15,000 feet.