Aqaba ( ar, العقبة ''al-ʻAqabah'') is one of the

governorates of Jordan Jordan is divided into three regions, further into twelve governorates ('' muhafatha''), further subdivided into districts ('' liwa''), and often into sub-districts ('' qada''). 1994 reform In 1994, four new governorates were created as part of ...

, located south of

Amman Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 as of 2021, Amman is ...

, capital of

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

. Its capital is

Aqaba Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Govern ...

. It is the fourth largest governorate in Jordan by area and is ranked 10th by population. Aqaba, the port at the

Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...

, plays an important role in the economic life of Jordan. Two of Jordan's top three tourist destinations lie in Aqaba Governorate,

Wadi Rum Wadi Rum ( ar, وادي رم ''Wādī Ramm'', also ''Wādī al-Ramm''), known also as the Valley of the Moon ( ar, وادي القمر ''Wādī al-Qamar''), is a valley cut into the sandstone and granite rock in southern Jordan, about to the east ...

, and the port city of

. The port is Jordan's most important import/export hub. The industrial port lies about 15 km to the south from the beaches and the Aqaba city center.

Geography

Aqaba Governorate lies in the south western tip of Jordan, it borders

Ma'an Governorate Ma'an ( ar, معان) is one of the governorates of Jordan, it is located south of Amman, Jordan's capital. Its capital is the city of Ma'an. This governorate is the largest in the kingdom of Jordan by area. History The land of the Governorat ...

from the east,

Tafilah Governorate Tafilah ( ar, الطفيلة) is one of the governorates of Jordan, located about 180 km south-west of Amman, Jordan's capital. Tafilah Governorate is bordered by Karak Governorate to the north, Ma'an Governorate to the east and south, Aqa ...

from the north, Saudi Arabia from the south, Israel from the west, and the

Gulf of Aqaba The Gulf of Aqaba ( ar, خَلِيجُ ٱلْعَقَبَةِ, Khalīj al-ʿAqabah) or Gulf of Eilat ( he, מפרץ אילת, Mifrátz Eilát) is a large gulf at the northern tip of the Red Sea, east of the Sinai Peninsula and west of the Arabian ...

from the southwest. There are two international crossing points in Aqaba Governorate, the

Durra Border Crossing Durra Border Crossing (مركز حدود الدرة) is a border crossing between Aqaba in Jordan and Haql in Saudi Arabia. On the Jordanian side, the border terminal is maintained by the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority. The border crossing c ...

and

Wadi Araba crossing The Wadi Araba Crossing (Jordanian name, ar, تقاطع وادي عربة) or Yitzhak Rabin Crossing (Israeli name, he, מעבר יצחק רבין) is an international border crossing between Aqaba, Jordan and Eilat, Israel. Opened on August 8, ...

. The Jordanian- Saudi border originally ran a few kilometers south of Aqaba. In 1965 the late King

Hussein Hussein, Hussain, Hossein, Hossain, Huseyn, Husayn, Husein or Husain (; ar, حُسَيْن ), coming from the triconsonantal root Ḥ-S-i-N ( ar, ح س ی ن, link=no), is an Arabic name which is the diminutive of Hassan, meaning "good", " ...

exchanged of the valuable coastal strip for areas in the desert.

History

The city of

was inhabited since 4000 BC, it reached its peak during the Roman era, when the Romans constructed the

Via Traiana Nova The Via Traiana Nova or Via Nova Traiana ( for, , Latin, Trajan's New Road), previously known as the Via Regia or King's Highway, was an ancient Roman road built by Emperor Trajan in the province of Arabia Petraea, from Aqaba on the Red Sea t ...

route that terminates in

. Aqaba (known then as Ayla) was also the garrison of the Roman 10th Legion of the Sea Strait (Legio X Fretensis). Aqaba was also the site of some of the adventures of

Sinbad the Sailor Sinbad the Sailor (; ar, سندباد البحري, Sindibādu al-Bahriyy; fa, سُنباد بحری, Sonbād-e Bahri or Sindbad) is a fictional mariner and the hero of a story-cycle of Persian origin. He is described as hailing from Baghd ...

in the famous Arabian Nights. In modern history, the city of Aqaba is known for

Lawrence of Arabia Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British archaeologist, army officer, diplomat, and writer who became renowned for his role in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918) and the Sinai and Palestine Campaign (1915–1918 ...

and the

Battle of Aqaba The Battle of Aqaba (6 July 1917) was fought for the Red Sea port of Aqaba (now in Jordan) during the Arab Revolt of World War I. The attacking forces, led by Sherif Nasir and Auda abu Tayi and advised by T. E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia") ...

, one of the key battles in World War I in the Middle East. The greatest archaeological treasure of the region is

Petra Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to the mountain of Ja ...

. Petra lies on the eastern slope of Mount Hor in Wādī ʻAraba, a section of the

Rift Valley A rift valley is a linear shaped lowland between several highlands or mountain ranges created by the action of a geologic rift. Rifts are formed as a result of the pulling apart of the lithosphere due to extensional tectonics. The linear d ...

that runs from the

on the

to the

Dead Sea The Dead Sea ( he, יַם הַמֶּלַח, ''Yam hamMelaḥ''; ar, اَلْبَحْرُ الْمَيْتُ, ''Āl-Baḥrū l-Maytū''), also known by other names, is a salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Ban ...

. The oldest script written in Arabic alphabets was found in

in Aqaba Governorate, and dates back to the 4th century.

Economy

The governorate's population depends heavily on tourism as a major source of income. The port of

is the only sea port for Jordan. Almost all of Jordan's foreign trade comes through Aqaba. During the Iraqi-Iranian War, Iraq used the port of Aqaba for its foreign trade.

Administrative divisions

Aqaba Governorate is divided into three departments according to article 15 of the Administrative Divisions System of the year 2000 by the Ministry of Interior:

Demographics

The

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction usi ...

of districts according to

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

results:

Gallery

File:AqabaVueDeLaMer.JPG, The city of

is the capital of Aqaba Governorate File:Wadi Rum2.jpeg,

File:Aqaba Railway Corporation BW 1.JPG, A train coming from the port of

References

{{Authority control Governorates of Jordan Aqaba