Jordan tourist information

Jordan is an Arab country in the Middle East. It is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the north-east, Saudi Arabia to the east and south, and Israel and the Palestinian Territories / Israeli-occupied territories to the west. It shares with Israel and the Palestinian Territories the coastlines of the Dead Sea, and the Gulf of Aqaba with Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt.

Places to go in Jordan ...

Amman Aqaba Madaba Petra Swaimeh

Jordan is a Middle Eastern country, bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the northeast, Saudi Arabia to the east and south and Israel and West Bank to the west. All these border lines add up to 1,619 kilometres (1,006 mi). The Gulf of Aqaba and the Dead Sea also touch the country, and thus Jordan has a coastline of 26 kilometres (16 mi).

Jordan consists mostly of arid desert plateau in the east, with Highland area in the west. The Great Rift Valley of the Jordan River separates Jordan and Israel. The highest point in the country is Jabal Ram (1,734 m; 5,689 ft), while the lowest is the Dead Sea (-486 m; -1,594 ft). Jordan is part of a region considered to be "the cradle of civilization".

Major cities include the capital Amman in the northwest, Irbid and Az Zarqa, both in the north.

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History

For most of its history since independence from British administration in 1946, Jordan was ruled by King HUSSEIN (1953-99). A pragmatic ruler, he successfully navigated competing pressures from the major powers (US, USSR, and UK), various Arab states, Israel, and a large internal Palestinian population, despite several wars and coup attempts. In 1989 he reinstituted parliamentary elections and gradual political liberalization; in 1994 he signed a formal peace treaty with Israel.

King ABDALLAH II - the eldest son of King HUSSEIN and Princess MUNA - assumed the throne following his father's death in February 1999. Since then, he has consolidated his power and undertaken an aggressive economic reform program. Jordan acceded to the World Trade Organization in 2000, and began to participate in the European Free Trade Association in 2001. After a two-year delay, parliamentary and municipal elections took place in the summer of 2003. The Prime Minister and government appointed in October 2004 declared their commitment to accelerated economic and political reforms and the new cabinet includes an unprecedented four women as ministers.

Transportation

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Terrain Mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River.

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Languages Arabic (official), English widely understood among upper and middle classes

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Religion Sunni Muslim 92%, Christian 6% (majority Greek Orthodox, but some Greek and Roman Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Protestant denominations), other 2% (several small Shi'a Muslim and Druze populations) (2001 est.)

Weather Mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April).

Ethnic Groups Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1%

Currency Jordanian Dinar (JOD)

More countries in Middle East ...

Bahrain Cyprus Israel Jordan Kuwait Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia Syria Turkey United Arab Emirates Yemen

* This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Source wikipedia.