Denali (Mount McKinley)

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It's the highest mountain in North America and is known as Mount McKinley to most Americans. But its official name in Alaska is Denali, which means "the high one" in the Athabaskan language.

Mount McKinley or Denali in Alaska is the highest mountain peak in North America, at a height of approximately 20,320 feet (6,194 m).

The mountain was also known as Bolshaya Gora, meaning Big Mountain, in Russian.

Mount McKinley is located in the central portion of the Alaska Range, which spans much of south central Alaska. It is approximately 130 miles (209 km) north-northwest of Anchorage and 155 miles (249 km) southwest of Fairbanks.

Mount McKinley has two significant summits: the South Summit is the higher one, while the North Summit has an elevation of 19,470 feet (5,934 m) and a prominence of approximately 1,320 feet (402 m).

Mount McKinley is also commonly known as Denali, which means "the high one" in the Athabaskan language, and which is also the official name currently recognized by the State of Alaska.

In 1897 the Mountain was officially named Mount McKinley, after U.S. president William McKinley.

When Denali National Park and Preserve was established by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, December 2, 1980, the Alaska Board of Geographic Names changed the name of the mountain back to "Denali." However, the U.S. Board of Geographic Names maintains "McKinley". Alaskans tend to use "Denali" and rely on context to distinguish between the park and the mountain.