Ali (Arabic: علي‎ , ʿAlī) is a male Arabic name, derived from the Arabic root ع ل و which literally means high or Elevated. It is a common name in Arabic countries and the rest of the Muslim world.Islamic traditional use of the name goes back to Ali ibn Abu Talib, the Islamic leader and cousin of Muhammad, but the name is identical in form and meaning to the Hebrew: עֵלִי ‎, Eli, which goes back to the Eli in the biblical Books of Samuel.t can also be an English nickname, as a shortened form of Alexandra, Alison, Alice, Alistair, or Alexander. Ali is also a Finnish male given name, derived from Aleksanteri.