Na·jaf (n?j??f?) A city of south-central Iraq near the Euphrates River. A center of Shiite Islam, it is a starting point for the pilgrimage to Mecca.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.Najaf (?næd?æf) n (Placename) a holy city in central Iraq, near the River Euphrates; burial place of the Caliph Ali and a centre of the Shiite faith. Pop: 639 000 (2005 est)Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014Na?jaf (?næd? æf) also An-Najaf n. a city in central Iraq: holy city of the Shi?ites; shrine contains tomb of Ali (a.d. c600?661). 472,103. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.