100 Fun Facts About Jordan

What is the capital and largest city of Jordan?

With around five million people it is the largest city in the Levant and the seventh-largest in the Arab world.

What is Jordan's ruling royal house, descended from the Sharif of Mecca, called?

The Hashemites, descendants of the Prophet Muhammad through Sharif Hussein of Mecca, have ruled since 1921.

Which ancient rock-cut city, capital of the Nabataeans, is Jordan's most famous attraction?

Its inhabitants called it Raqmu; the pink sandstone earned it the nickname "Rose City", and it is one of the New 7 Wonders of the World.

Which Swiss traveller rediscovered the Nabataean rock-cut city for the Western world in 1812?

He spoke fluent Arabic and was on his way to explore the Niger when he heard tales of a dead city holding the tomb of Aaron.

Al-Khazneh, "the Treasury", is believed to be the mausoleum of which Nabataean king?

The elaborate first-century AD facade is 24 m wide and 37 m tall and echoes the architecture of Alexandria.

In which year did Emperor Trajan annex the Nabataean kingdom for Rome?

He rebuilt the ancient King's Highway, which became known as the Via Traiana Nova.

The Greek cities of Transjordan, such as Gerasa and Pella, formed which ten-city league under Rome?

Pella and Arbila (Irbid) were members too, and Emperor Hadrian visited Gerasa on his way to Palestine.

Which Jordanian city, ancient Gerasa, is nicknamed the "Pompeii of the Middle East"?

It is one of the best-preserved Roman cities in the East and hosts an annual music festival.

What was Jordan's capital called after the Greeks conquered it in the 3rd century BC?

The Rashidun conquerors restored the original name in the 7th century; in the Iron Age it had been Rabbath Ammon.

Rabat Aman, on the site of today's capital, was the capital of which Iron Age kingdom?

Moab lay in the highlands east of the Dead Sea and Edom around Wadi Araba in the south.

The 'Ain Ghazal site in eastern Amman is home to what record-holding artefacts?

The Neolithic limestone figures are now displayed in the Jordan Museum alongside some of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

At which 636 battle just north of Transjordan did the Muslims decisively defeat the Byzantines?

Seven years earlier the Byzantines and their Ghassanid allies had held off a Muslim force at Mu'tah in today's Karak governorate.

Al-Karak and Montreal castles were built in Transjordan by which power?

They formed part of the Lordship of Oultrejordain; Saladin's victory at Hattin in 1187 ended Crusader rule.

Ajloun Castle was built by which dynasty as an outpost against the Frankish invaders from Europe?

Founded by Saladin, the dynasty ruled from 1187 to 1260, when the Mamluks took over.

Fleeing Russian persecution, which Muslim people first settled the long-abandoned site of Amman in 1867?

Together with Chechens they still hold three reserved seats in the House of Representatives.

The Hejaz Railway, completed across Transjordan in 1908, linked Damascus with which holy city?

The line turned the region into a stopover for pilgrims and was later attacked repeatedly during the Arab Revolt.

On what date in 1921 was the Emirate of Transjordan established under its first emir?

The British had reluctantly accepted him after a six-month trial; the League of Nations recognised the state in September 1922.

In which year did Jordan gain independence from Britain and become a kingdom?

The Treaty of London was signed on 22 March and the kingdom proclaimed on 25 May, though English usage kept "Transjordan" until 1949.

Jordan's first king was assassinated in 1951 at which holy site in Jerusalem?

Rumours that he planned a peace treaty with Israel were behind the killing; his son Talal wrote the modern constitution in 1952.

Which king ruled Jordan for nearly 50 years until his death in 1999?

He came to the throne at 17 after his father abdicated through illness and Arabised the army command in 1956.

Jordan and which neighbouring kingdom, ruled by a royal cousin, formed the 1958 Arab Federation?

The union answered Nasser's United Arab Republic and lasted six months, until the Iraqi king was killed in a coup.

In which war did Jordan lose control of the West Bank to Israel?

Jordan had annexed the West Bank in 1950 and formally renounced its claim to the Palestinians in 1988.

After Black September in 1970, Palestinian fighters were expelled from Jordan to which country?

Support for the fedayeen had surged after the 1968 Battle of Karameh, when Jordanian troops and the PLO repelled an Israeli attack.

In which year did Jordan sign its peace treaty with Israel?

It was signed on 26 October after talks agreed at the 1991 Madrid Conference.

Who became King of Jordan on 7 February 1999?

His economic liberalisation fed a boom that lasted until 2008 and laid the foundations for Aqaba's free-trade zone.

The 2005 hotel bombings in Amman that killed 60 people were carried out by al-Qaeda under which leader?

Three hotel lobbies were hit on 9 November; extremists resent Jordan's treaty with Israel and its largely secular laws.

Jordan's only coastline, 26 km long, lies on which body of water?

The shore is on the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Port of Aqaba is the country's only port.

What is the lowest point in Jordan, and the lowest land point on Earth?

Its shore sits more than 400 m below sea level, and it is the deepest hypersaline lake in the world.

What is Jordan's highest point, at 1,854 m?

It stands in the far south near the Saudi border; most of the east of the country is arid desert.

Which desert valley in southern Jordan provided locations for both Lawrence of Arabia and The Martian?

David Lean's 1962 epic kick-started the country's tourism industry, and the valley has been a UNESCO site since 2011.

A rock formation in Wadi Rum was renamed in the 1980s after which book by T. E. Lawrence?

The mountain was originally Jabal al-Mazmar, and the book's "seven pillars" actually have nothing to do with the valley.

Into how many governorates is Jordan divided?

They are grouped informally into northern, central and southern regions.

What is the currency of Jordan?

It is pegged to the IMF's special drawing rights, at roughly 0.709 to the US dollar.

Roughly what share of Jordan's population is Sunni Muslim?

Most of the rest are Arab Christians, who hold nine reserved seats in parliament.

Christians made up what share of Jordan's population in 1930?

By the 2010s the share had fallen to about 4%; absolute numbers grew, but Muslim immigration and Christian emigration shifted the balance.

How many Syrian refugees were living in Jordan by 2015, according to estimates?

There were also some 2.1 million Palestinian refugees, most of them holding Jordanian citizenship.

What is mansaf, Jordan's national dish?

Its name means "large tray", and the sauce is made from jameed, a hard dried yogurt.

What does the red triangle on Jordan's flag represent?

The black, white and green bands stand for the Abbasid, Umayyad and Fatimid caliphates.

How many points does the white star on Jordan's flag have?

They refer to the seven verses of the opening chapter of the Quran, and the star stands for Arab unity.

Al-Maghtas on the east bank of the Jordan River is venerated as the site of what event?

The World Heritage Site is officially known as "Bethany Beyond the Jordan" and includes a monastery on Elijah's Hill.

According to the Bible, which figure viewed the Promised Land from Mount Nebo before dying?

On a clear day Jerusalem can be seen from the 700 m summit, and Jericho is usually visible.

The 6th-century Madaba Map, the oldest surviving map of the Holy Land, is made of what?

It lies in the church of Saint George in Madaba and shows an area from Lebanon to the Nile Delta.

Ahmad Abughaush won Jordan's first-ever Olympic medal, a gold at Rio 2016, in which sport?

He won the −67 kg division, and the sport is now the kingdom's favourite alongside football and basketball.

Jordan lost the final of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup to which team?

The team had earlier reached the quarter-finals in 2004 and 2011 and missed the 2014 World Cup only in a play-off against Uruguay.

Jordan missed the 2014 World Cup after losing a two-legged play-off to which country?

The women's team, meanwhile, climbed to 58th in the world rankings in 2016.

Jordan's first organised army, founded in 1920, was known by what name?

It grew from 150 men to 8,000 by 1946 and proved the most effective Arab force in the 1948 war.

Which airline is Jordan's national flag carrier, based at Queen Alia International Airport?

The country's third airport, King Hussein International, serves Aqaba.

Which two minerals are Jordan's main industrial products, along with cement and fertilisers?

The Petra Engineering Industries Company has even supplied air-conditioning units to NASA.

Jordan is 400 km long from north to south, between Umm Qais and which southern city?

The country covers about 89,000 km2, with a Mediterranean climate in the western highlands and desert in the east.

Copper for bronze was extracted on a large scale in antiquity from which Jordanian valley?

The site is now part of the Dana Biosphere Reserve, one of the country's main nature reserves.

The Great Arab Revolt against the Ottomans began on 5 June 1916 from which city?

It reached Transjordan with the Battle of Aqaba in July 1917 and climaxed when Faisal entered Damascus in October 1918.

The Mesha Stele, erected in 840 BC, records the boasts of a king of which Transjordanian kingdom?

King Mesha used it to celebrate his building projects and a victory over the Israelites; a copy sits in the Jordan Museum.

The Aqaba Church in Ayla is considered the world's first purpose-built place of what faith?

It dates from the Byzantine era, when Umm ar-Rasas near Amman gained at least 16 churches of its own.

The Abbasid campaign to overthrow the Umayyads began in which Transjordanian village?

A powerful 749 earthquake is thought to have helped the Abbasids, who then moved the caliphate from Damascus to Baghdad.

In the 1968 Battle of Karameh, Jordanian forces and the PLO repelled an attack by which country?

The events gained wide acclaim in the Arab world and fuelled a surge of support for Palestinian fedayeen inside Jordan.

In 1997 Israeli agents entered Jordan on Canadian passports and poisoned which Hamas leader?

Under intense pressure Israel supplied the antidote and freed dozens of prisoners, including Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.

Which king established Jordan's modern constitution in 1952 before abdicating through illness?

His eldest son Hussein took the throne in 1953 at just 17 and reigned for 46 years.

How much saltier than the average ocean is the Dead Sea?

The salinity makes it impossible to sink and is used to treat skin diseases, alongside the Ma'in Hot Springs nearby.

By the mid-2010s, Jordan was credited with what share of Arabic-language content online?

ICT was the country's fastest-growing sector, employing more than 84,000 people and 12% of GDP by 2014.

Jordan's first oil-shale power plant, commissioned in 2023, is called what?

The country holds the world's fifth-largest oil-shale reserves, officially put at over 70 billion tonnes.

Which Petra monument stood in for the Grail temple in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade?

The film's climax did wonders for Petra's tourism, and Jordan's tourism board still mentions the connection on its website.

The Jordan River flows through which lake before it drains into the Dead Sea?

The river is only 251 km long and endorheic, meaning its water never reaches an ocean.

The King Abdullah I Mosque in Amman is capped by a mosaic dome of what colour?

Built between 1982 and 1989 in the Abdali district, it holds 3,000 worshippers and lends visiting women a free hooded gown.

What is the national flower of Jordan?

Iris nigricans is endemic to Jordan and endangered; its blackish-purple blooms can reach 15 cm across.

Queen Alia, King Hussein's third wife, died in 1977 in what kind of accident?

The king announced her death himself on the radio, saying the crash had happened in a violent rainstorm.

Queen Rania of Jordan was born in 1970 in which country?

Her family, originally from Tulkarm in the West Bank, moved to Jordan only after the Iraqi invasion of 1990.

King Abdullah II made a non-speaking 1996 cameo in which science-fiction series?

The self-described Trekkie appeared in the episode "Investigations"; his other hobbies include skydiving and motorcycling.

Jordanian pilot Muath al-Kasasbeh, killed by ISIL in 2015, was flying what aircraft when it crashed?

His jet went down near Raqqa in December 2014; Jordan answered his killing with three days of airstrikes named Operation Martyr Muath.

In March 2000 Pope John Paul II visited the summit of which biblical mountain in Jordan?

The summit carries a serpentine cross by Italian sculptor Gian Paolo Fantoni, recalling the bronze serpent of Numbers 21.

How do the 69 members of Jordan's Senate take their seats?

Senators serve four-year terms and can be reappointed; the elected House of Representatives has 138 members.

The red-and-white checkered keffiyeh that symbolises Jordan is known by what name?

The tasselled scarf is worn mostly in Jordan and by Bedouin communities, in contrast to the black-and-white pattern common elsewhere.

Petra's largest monument, Ad Deir, is known in English by what name?

It is 45 m tall and 50 m wide, with a deliberately flattened plaza in front for worship.

In which year was Petra designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

The listing came on 6 December; the New 7 Wonders vote that made it a household name followed 22 years later.

Which northern Jordanian town sits on the ruins of Gadara, overlooking the Golan Heights?

Gadara's 170 km network of aqueduct tunnels once carried spring water from southern Syria to the city.

Zarqa, Jordan's second-largest city, was founded in 1902 by immigrants from which people?

An Ottoman decree of 1905 let the settlers own the land; the city later produced al-Qaeda in Iraq's first leader.

Jordan sealed its first-ever World Cup place in June 2025 with a 3-0 away win over whom?

At the 2026 finals the debutants' last group game was against Argentina, with Musa Al-Taamari scoring Jordan's goal in a 3-1 loss.

Jordan's football nickname, Al Nashama, translates roughly as what?

The side's best finish at the Asian Cup came in 2023, when it lost the final after five tournament appearances.

Queen Noor, King Hussein's American-born fourth wife, was born under what name?

Her father Najeeb Halaby ran Pan American World Airways from 1969 to 1972; she married the king in Amman in 1978.

Which 2014 Bedouin coming-of-age film earned Jordan its first Academy Award nomination?

Director Naji Abu Nowar cast non-professional actors from southern Jordan's Bedouin community and won Best Director at Venice.

Which capital of Balqa Governorate was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2021?

The town thrived as an Ottoman regional capital around 1900, and its isolation let locals largely ignore the sultan's governors before that.

The Dead Sea Scroll displayed in Amman is unique for being written on what material?

Found in Qumran's Cave 3 in 1952, it had corroded to brittle oxide and moved to the new Jordan Museum in 2013.

Ancient Egyptians imported which Dead Sea product for use in mummification?

The lake still discharges lumps of the stuff, and it was later mined for potash fertiliser instead.

In which year did UNESCO add Jordan's national dish to its intangible heritage list?

Tradition says it is eaten standing around a shared platter, right hand only, with the left hand behind the back.

Which Umayyad desert castle's frescoes include the first known map of the heavens on a dome?

Its bathhouse is one of the oldest surviving hammams in the Muslim world, and the ceilings also show dancers and a famous "six kings" panel.

According to Josephus, John the Baptist was imprisoned and executed at which Jordanian fortress?

The hilltop palace near today's Mukawir also links to Herod Antipas, Herodias and Salome of the Gospel story.

Jordan made its Olympic debut at which Summer Games?

The only Jordanian winter Olympian is Mohamed Hadid, who raced in speed skiing at Albertville 1992.

Which Amman club, rooted in a Palestinian refugee camp, is Al-Faisaly's fiercest rival?

Al-Faisaly, nicknamed the Blue Eagles, holds the record in every domestic competition, including 35 league titles.

The airline Alia, Jordan's flag carrier from 1963, was named after which relative of King Hussein?

It launched with two Dart Heralds and a DC-7 flying to Kuwait City, Beirut and Cairo, and joined Oneworld in 2007.

Which US prep school did King Abdullah II attend, inspiring the school he founded near Madaba?

He hired its headmaster Eric Widmer to run the 2007 school near Madaba, billed as the Middle East's first boarding school.

Who was Jordan's crown prince from 1965 until being replaced three weeks before Hussein died?

The Oxford-educated prince lost the role on 24 January 1999 to his nephew Abdullah, who took the throne days later.

Zaatari, the world's largest camp for Syrian refugees, lies 10 km east of which Jordanian city?

Opened in July 2012, it held 45,000 people within four months and has since grown into a permanent settlement.

What 2004 statement by King Abdullah II sought to define who is a Muslim and curb takfir?

Two hundred scholars from more than 50 countries endorsed its three-point ruling on Muslim identity, excommunication and fatwas.

In 1965 Jordan traded 6,000 km2 of desert for 12 km of extra coastline with which neighbour?

The swap brought the Yamanieh coral reef south of Aqaba into Jordanian waters.

What monument was built at Gerasa to celebrate Emperor Hadrian's visit in AD 129–130?

Much of the city fell in the Galilee earthquake of 749; since 1981 its ruins have hosted a three-week summer arts festival.

Petra's Bedul Bedouin were moved from their cave homes in the 1980s to which settlement?

Their name means "the changing ones", and UNESCO inscribed their cultural heritage on its intangible list in 2008.

A plaster inscription found at Deir Alla in 1967 records the visions of which biblical seer?

Written in red and black ink on a wall, the 119 fragments name him exactly as Numbers does: son of Be'or.

Which Jordanian prime minister was assassinated by the Black September Organization in 1971?

He had commanded part of the 1970 campaign against the fedayeen; the group turned to Israeli targets the following year.

The Hellenistic palace Qasr al-Abd west of Amman is linked to which Tobiad governor?

Josephus says he settled east of the Jordan after losing a power struggle in Jerusalem; a nearby cave carving shows a lioness sheltering a cub.

Frescoes of grapes and vines found in a Little Petra dining cave in 2010 likely honour which god?

The 2,000-year-old Hellenistic ceiling, complete with putti, suggests the Nabataean suburb hosted wine-drinking traders.

Glubb Pasha, who led Jordan's army until 1956, was nicknamed Abu Hunaik for an injury to what?

The wound came on the Western Front in the First World War; the Arabic means "father of the little jaw".