In which region is the Tian Shan, a large system of mountain ranges, located?

The Tian Shan, meaning the Mountains of Heaven or the Heavenly Mountain, is a large system of mountain ranges located in Central Asia.

The name in Chinese, Tian Shan, is most likely a direct translation of the traditional Kyrgyz name for the mountains, "Teñir Too". The Tian Shan is sacred in Tengrism (ancient ethnic and state Turko-Mongolic religion), and its second-highest peak is known as Khan Tengri which may be translated as "Lord of the Spirits".

Tian Shan is north and west of the Taklamakan Desert and directly north of the Tarim Basin in the border region of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Xinjiang in Northwest China. In the south it links up with the Pamir Mountains and to north and east it meets the Altai Mountains of Mongolia.

The Tian Shan are a part of the Himalayan orogenic belt, which was formed by the collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates in the Cenozoic era.