Jordan

Introduction & Quick Facts
Land
- Relief
- Drainage
- Soils
- Climate
- Plant and animal life
People
- Ethnic groups
- Languages
- Religion
- Settlement patterns
  - Bedouin
  - Rural settlement
  - Urban settlement
- Demographic trends
Economy
- Agriculture
- Resources and power
- Manufacturing
- Finance
- Trade
- Services
- Labor and taxation
- Transportation and telecommunications
Government and society
- Constitutional framework
- Local government
- Justice
- Political process
- Security
- Health and welfare
- Housing
- Education
Cultural life
- Daily life and social customs
- The arts
- Cultural institutions
- Sports and recreation
- Media and publishing
History
- Biblical associations
- The Latin kingdom and Muslim domination
- Transjordan, the Hashemite Kingdom, and the Palestine war
- Jordan under King Hussein
  - Securing the throne, 1953 to c. 1960
  - The PLO and the June 1967 war
  - From 1967 to civil war
  - From 1973 to the intifada
  - Renouncing claims to the West Bank
  - From the Persian Gulf War to peace with Israel
  - Hussein’s last years and the ascent of Abdullah II
- Reign of Abdullah II
  - Early policies
  - Arab Spring and reform
  - Continued reform and austerity

References & Edit History Facts & Stats

Images

Flag of Jordan: three horizontal stripes (black, white, green) with a red triangle at the hoist bearing a white seven-pointed star.

Map of Jordan and surrounding countries, showing international boundaries, major cities such as Amman, Irbid, and Aqaba, and neighboring nations including Israel, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The map also features the West Bank, Golan Heights, and a small locator inset highlighting Jordan's location within the Middle East.

Map of the Middle East highlighting Jordan in orange, showing its location relative to neighboring countries including Israel, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia, as well as nearby bodies of water such as the Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, and Persian Gulf. A small inset globe in the lower left corner indicates the region's position within the world.

Petra, Jordan: Al-Dayr

Qasr ʿAmrah, Jordan: desert palace

Jordan: Wadi Ramm

Jordan: Ethnic composition

Jordan: Religious affiliation

At a Glance

default image

Jordan: Media

country, Asia

Images

Flag of Jordan: three horizontal stripes (black, white, green) with a red triangle at the hoist bearing a white seven-pointed star.

Jordan

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Map of Jordan and surrounding countries, showing international boundaries, major cities such as Amman, Irbid, and Aqaba, and neighboring nations including Israel, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The map also features the West Bank, Golan Heights, and a small locator inset highlighting Jordan's location within the Middle East.

Jordan

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Map of the Middle East highlighting Jordan in orange, showing its location relative to neighboring countries including Israel, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia, as well as nearby bodies of water such as the Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, and Persian Gulf. A small inset globe in the lower left corner indicates the region's position within the world.

Jordan

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Petra, Jordan: Al-Dayr

Petra, Jordan: Al-Dayr

Al-Dayr (“the Monastery”) at Petra, Jordan.

© Arraial/Fotolia

Qasr ʿAmrah, Jordan: desert palace

Qasr ʿAmrah, Jordan: desert palace

Muslim desert palace, dating to the 8th century ce,...

H. Kanus/Superstock

Yarmūk River

Yarmūk River

Bridge over the Yarmūk River, destroyed in 1946, near the Jordan-Israel border.

Effib

Jordan: Wadi Ramm

Jordan: Wadi Ramm

Rocky outcrops in the Wadi Ramm (Wadi Rum) desert region, southern Jordan, in a UNESCO...

© Shawn McCullars

The Roman amphitheatre in Amman, Jordan, with its stone seating and stage, stands in front of a hillside densely packed with modern dwellings and greenery.

Amman, Jordan: Roman theater

Roman theater ruins (foreground), surrounded by the city of Amman, Jordan.

© Leonid Andronov/stock.adobe.com

Population density of Jordan

Population density of Jordan

Population density of Jordan.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Petra, Jordan: Khasneh (“Treasury”)

Petra, Jordan: Khasneh (“Treasury”)

The Khasneh (“Treasury”) tomb, Petra, Jordan.

© Shawn McCullars

Jarash, Jordan: Roman ruins of Gerasa

Jarash, Jordan: Roman ruins of Gerasa

Ruins of the Roman city of Gerasa (foreground), Jarash, Jordan.

Silvio Fiore/SuperStock, Inc.

Map showing the British Mandate of Palestine, with the area under direct British administration until 1948 shaded in purple, covering present-day Israel and the Palestinian territories. The area labeled as the Transjordan emirate, east of the Jordan River, is marked with yellow and purple stripes, including cities such as Amman and Ma'an. Surrounding countries-Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Egypt-are labeled, and major cities like Jerusalem, Jaffa, Hebron, and Nablus are indicated within the mandate.

British mandate of Palestine, 1917–47

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Jordan

Jordan

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Audio

National anthem of Jordan

The instrumental version of the national anthem of Jordan.

Interactives

Jordan: Ethnic composition

Jordan: Ethnic composition

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Jordan: Religious affiliation

Jordan: Religious affiliation

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Jordan: Urban-rural

Jordan: Urban-rural

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Jordan: Age breakdown

Jordan: Age breakdown

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Jordan: Major import sources

Jordan: Major import sources

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Jordan: Major export destinations

Jordan: Major export destinations

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

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