In 1639 Ivan Moskvitin ascended the rivers Aldan and Maya and crossed to the Ulya to reach the Sea of Okhotsk.

Previously, a version of the origin from the Turkic-Mongolian word altan, altyn in the meaning of "gold" was spread, then a hypothesis appeared of the origin of the hydronym Aldan (in the variant Allan) from the Evenk oldo, ollo — "fish".

It flows roughly in a northeast / ENE direction south of the Lena Plateau across the Aldan Highlands, where it forms the northern border of the Sunnagyn Range.

Then it flows past Aldan and through Tommot, Ust-Maya, Eldikan and Khandyga before turning northwest.

In its last stretch it flanks the southern slopes of the Verkhoyansk Range and joins the Lena near Batamay.