Over 250 years ago there was a Tsou chief called Abali. A brave and skilled hunter, every member of every hunting team he led came back alive and fully loaded up, and to honor him, the tribespeople named the area for him, calling it Mt. Ali. Or at least, such is the explanation found in materials big and small about Alishan National Forest Recreation Area.
相傳二百五十多年前，鄒族有位酋長叫「阿巴里」，驍勇善獵，帶領族人入山打獵都滿載而歸，族人為了感念他，將該地取名為「阿里山」──這樣的說明，不斷出現在阿里山國家森林遊樂區的大小簡介中。