Princess Alia bint Al Hussein (born 13 February 1956) is the eldest child of

King Hussein of Jordan Hussein bin Talal (14 November 1935 – 7 February 1999) was King of Jordan from 1952 until his death in 1999. As a member of the Hashemite dynasty, the royal family of Jordan since 1921, Hussein was traditionally considered a 40th-generatio ...

. Her mother is his first wife,

Sharif Sharīf or Sherif (, 'noble', 'highborn'), also spelled shareef, feminine sharīfa (), plural ashrāf (), shurafāʾ (), or (in the Maghreb) shurfāʾ, is a title used to designate a person descended, or claiming to be descended, from the fami ...

Dina bint Abdul-Hamid Dina bint Abdul-Hamid (; 15 December 1929 – 21 August 2019) was a Hashemite princess and Queen of Jordan from 1955 until 1957 as the first wife of Hussein of Jordan, King Hussein. She was the mother to Hussein's oldest child, Princess Alia bin ...

. She is the older half-sister of

Abdullah II of Jordan Abdullah II (Abdullah bin Hussein; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of the Hashemites, who have been the reigning royal family of Jordan since 1921, and is traditionally reg ...

Education

Princess Alia received her primary education in Amman, attending Ahliyyah School for Girls and Rosary College, Amman. She then attended Sibton Park School in

Lyminge Lyminge is a village and civil parish in southeast Kent, England. It lies about five miles (8 km) from Folkestone and the Channel Tunnel, on the road passing through the Elham Valley. At the 2011 Census the population of Etchinghill, Kent ...

, England, until 1968, after spending one year at

Benenden School Benenden School is a private boarding school for girls in Kent, England, in Hemsted Park at Benenden, between Cranbrook and Tenterden. Benenden has a boarding population of over 550 girls aged 11 to 18, as well as a limited number of day s ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

(1969–70), and obtaining her

A-Levels The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...

in Arabic, English, and French from

Millfield School Millfield is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18) located in Street, Somerset, England. It was founded in 1935. Millfield is a registered charity and is the largest co-educational boarding s ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, England, in 1972. Princess Alia graduated with honours from the

University of Jordan The University of Jordan (), often abbreviated UJ or JU, is a public university located in Amman, Jordan. Founded in 1962, and it is the largest and oldest institution of higher education in Jordan. It is located in the capital Amman in the J ...

in 1977, obtaining a bachelor's degree in English literature.

Marriage

Princess Alia married Lieutenant-Colonel Nasser Wasfi Mirza (born 1945) on 12 April 1977 in the Raghadan Palace, and has one son from the marriage: * Hussein Mirza (born 12 February 1981) Alia and Nasser divorced in 1988. She married

Sayyid ''Sayyid'' is an honorific title of Hasanid and Husaynid lineage, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and Ali's sons Hasan ibn Ali, Hasan and Husayn ibn Ali, Husayn. The title may also refer ...

Mohammed Al-Saleh (elder son of

Farid Al-Saleh) in Amman on 30 July 1988. They have two children: * Talal Al-Saleh (born 12 September 1989) * Abdul Hamid Al-Saleh (born 15 November 1992) Princess Alia and her half-sister

Zein Zein ( ) is a class of prolamine protein found in maize. It is usually manufactured as a powder from corn gluten meal. Zein is one of the best understood plant proteins.Momany, Frank A.; Sessa, David J.; Lawton, John C.; Selling, Gordon W.; Ha ...

are also sisters-in-law, with Zein married to Mohammed Al-Saleh's brother.

Life and activities

Princess Alia worked as registrar and artist with the British School of Archaeology under Crystal Benett OBE, and has been a member of Fakherelnissa' Zeid's Art Group since the 1980s. In her capacity as director of the Royal Stables of Jordan for the Preservation of the Arabian Horses, Princess Alia initiated the festival of the "Arabian Horse at Home" in 1988 (now a yearly event) and organised the Middle East Championships for Purebred Horses, Jordan. She has also founded the Princess Alia Foundation, a non-profit, non-governmental organisation that is under the Ministry of Social Development in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Its stated motto is "Respect and Compassion towards Creation". In that capacity, in 2011, she delivered the keynote address at the

World Arabian Horse Organization The World Arabian Horse Organization (WAHO) is the world organization for the preservation, improvement and preservation of Arabian horses. WAHO grants membership to nations after examination of national breeding stud book A breed registry, als ...

(WAHO) conference titled "The Relationship Between Horses and Humans in Today's World," drawing clear parallels between

animal welfare Animal welfare is the quality of life and overall well-being of animals. Formal standards of animal welfare vary between contexts, but are debated mostly by animal welfare groups, legislators, and academics. Animal welfare science uses measures ...

and human rights. Princess Alia has held a 2

Dan Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa ** Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivo ...

Black Belt

Taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

since 1987, and enjoys

equestrianism Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding ( Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

horse breeding Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given Horse breed, breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired chara ...

, judging of

Arabian horse The Arabian or Arab horse ( , DIN 31635, DMG ''al-ḥiṣān al-ʿarabī'') is a horse breed, breed of horse with historic roots on the Arabian Peninsula. With a distinctive head shape and high tail carriage, the Arabian is one of the most easi ...

s, collecting stamps, reading and sports in general. Equestrianism is a family passion; her half-sister, Princess

Haya bint Hussein Princess Haya bint Al Hussein (; born 3 May 1974) is the daughter of King Hussein of Jordan and his third wife, Queen Alia. She is the half-sister of King Abdullah II. Haya is a graduate of the University of Oxford in England and an accomplis ...

, is the former president of the

International Federation for Equestrian Sports The International Federation for Equestrian Sports (, FEI) is the international sport governing body, governing body of equestrianism, equestrian sports. The FEI came into being following the Olympic Congress in Lausanne (SUI) in 1921 from May ...

(FEI) and a member of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

(IOC).

Patronages

* Registrar and Artist of the British School of Archaeology. * Director of the Royal Jordanian State Stud since 1973. * Hononorary President of the

Alumni Club (UJAC). * Hononorary President of the Royal Jordanian Equestrian Federation since 1993. * Hononorary President of the Jordan Meningitis Foundation (JMF) since 1995. * Hononorary President of the Jordanian Philatelic Society. * Hononorary President of the Circassian Ladies's Welfare Society. * Hononorary President of the Society for the Development and Welfare of Rural Women. * Patron of the Brooke Hospital for Animals Princess Alia Clinic at

Wadi Musa Wadi Musa (, literally "Valley of Musa (AS)) is a town located in the Ma'an Governorate in southern Jordan. It is the administrative center of the Petra Department and the nearest town to the archaeological site of Petra, being only 3.5 km (2.2 ...

. * Honorary Governor of the Arab Horse Society (United Kingdom). * Director of the Royal Stables for the Preservation of the Arabian Horse since 1980.

Notable published works

Source: * ''The Arabian Horse of Egypt'' (), co-authored by

Sarra Ghazi Sarra may refer to: * Chris Sarra (21st century), Australian educator * Janis Sarra, Canadian lawyer * Sarra Manning (21st century), writer * Sarra, Nablus, a town in the West Bank * Ma'tan as-Sarra, an oasis in Libya See also * Sara (disambiguat ...

. * ''Royal Heritage: The Story of Jordan's Arab Horses'' (), co-authored by

Peter Upton Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

. * ''Small Miracles: The Story of the Princess Alia Foundation'' (), co-authored by

Cynthia Culbertson Cynthia is a feminine given name of Greek origin: , , "from Mount Cynthus" on the island of Delos. The name has been in use in the Anglosphere since the 17th century. There are various spellings for this name, and it can be abbreviated to Cindy, ...

Honours

National honours

Grand Cordon of the

Supreme Order of the Renaissance The Supreme Order of the Renaissance (,) is the second-most senior order of merit in the Kingdom of Jordan. History The order was instituted in 1917 by Emir Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca. According to correspondence between the British For ...

Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Star of Jordan The Order of the Star of Jordan (Wisam al-Kawkab al-Urduni) or The Order of Hussein ibn Ali (Wisam al-Hussein ibn Ali) is an award and order of Jordan and is awarded for military or civil merit. It was founded in honour of his father, by King ...

First Class of Al-Hussein Decoration for Distinguished Contribution (5 February 2007)

Foreign honours

* : Grand Cordon (Paulownia) of the

Order of the Precious Crown The is a Japanese order, established on January 4, 1888 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. Since the Order of the Rising Sun at that time was an Order for men, it was established as an Order for women. Originally the order had five classes, but on Apr ...

(10 March 1976) * : Grand Cross of the

Royal Norwegian Order of Merit The Royal Norwegian Order of Merit (Norwegian: ''Den Kongelige Norske Fortjenstorden'' (Bokmål) or ''Den Kongelege Norske Fortenesteordenen'' (Nynorsk)) was instituted by King Olav V in 1985. It is awarded to foreigners, Norwegian citizens livin ...

(4 April 2000) * : Grand Cross of the

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic (; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OYC) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bestowed by the Kingdom of Spain, alongside the Order of Charles III (established in 1771) and ...

(18 March 1977)Boletín Oficial del Estado
/ref>

References

External links

Princess Alia Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alia Bint Al Hussein House of Hashim Jordanian female taekwondo practitioners Jordanian princesses 1956 births Living people People educated at Millfield University of Jordan alumni People educated at Benenden School Grand Cordons of the Order of the Precious Crown Recipients of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Jordanian people of Egyptian descent Daughters of kings