Geography of Amman
Amman, Jordan, the nation's capital and largest city. It is about 45 miles (72 km) east-northeast of Jerusalem. Amman is the commercial and industrial center of Jordan. Cement, textiles, processed foods, and tobacco and leather goods are produced. The city has a number of ancient ruins. The modern section has wide boulevards and streets lined with stores and government buildings, including the king's palace. The University of Jordan is here.
Prehistoric humans occupied the site of Amman as early as 3500 B.C. By 1300 B.C. it had become the chief city of the Ammonites. It was taken over about 300 B.C. by the Hellenistic rulers of Egypt, who named it Philadelphia, and then by the Romans (30 B.C.). Under Muslim rule from the mid-seventh century A.D., the city declined. It revived after 1920, when it was made the administrative center of Transjordan, and especially after 1946, when it became the capital of newly independent Jordan.
Population: 1,864,500.