Balqa' ( ar, البلقاء ''Al Balqā’'') is one of the governorates of Jordan. It is located northwest of

Amman Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite language, 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 a ...

, Jordan's capital. The governorate has the fourth largest population of the 12 governorates of Jordan, and is ranked 10th by area. It has the third highest population density in the kingdom after Irbid Governorate and Jerash Governorate.

History

The " Balqa" historically referred to the entire area of the eastern plateau of the Jordan Valley as early as the 7th century when

Heraclius Heraclius ( grc-gre, Ἡράκλειος, Hērákleios; c. 575 – 11 February 641), was List of Byzantine emperors, Eastern Roman emperor from 610 to 641. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the Exa ...

' brother

Theodore Theodore may refer to: Places * Theodore, Alabama, United States * Theodore, Australian Capital Territory * Theodore, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Banana, Australia * Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada * Theodore Reservoir, a lake in Sask ...

fought an early campaign against the Arabs on the approaches to southern Syria. During biblical times, the southern part of Balqa was known as the Plains of Moab. During World War I, the British army led by General Edmund Allenby entered Salt on 24 March 1918, in the Battles for Amman campaign, marking the end of a 500-year Ottoman rule. On March 21, 1968, the town of

Karameh Al-Karameh ( ar, الكرامة), or simply Karameh, is a town in west-central Jordan, near the Allenby Bridge which spans the Jordan River. Karameh sits on the eastern bank of the river, along the border between Jordan, Israel, as well as the Isr ...

near

Shouna al-Janubiyya Ash-Shunah al-Janubiyah ( ar, الشونة الجنوبية, also Shoonah Janoobiyah, South Shuna or Southern Shouneh, etc.) is a populated place in Balqa Governorate, Jordan, in the eastern Jordan Valley, not far from the place where the Jordan f ...

was the site of Battle of Karameh, between Israel on one side, and Jordan and Palestinian forces (

Fatah Fatah ( ar, فتح '), formerly the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, is a Palestinian nationalist social democratic political party and the largest faction of the confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and ...

PLO The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and s ...

) on the other side. It was one of the largest military confrontations of the War of Attrition, in the period between the Six-Day War of 1967 and the Yom Kippur War of 1973. Ottoman prisoners being escorted from Es Salt

Ottoman prisoners being escorted from Es Salt

Administrative divisions

The capital of the Balqa' Governorate is Salt. Other cities and towns in the governorate are

Mahis Mahis ( ar, ماحص, Māḥis, alternatively spelled Mahas) is a town in the Balqa Governorate northwest from the governorate's capital Salt, and west of Amman. Its population was 17,754 in 2015. Most of the population of Mahis descends from the ...

Fuhais Fuheis ( ar, الفحيص) is a Christian majority town in the central Jordanian governorate of Balqa. It lies in Wadi Shueib between Salt and Amman, at a distance of 6 and 13 kilometers respectively. It has an elevation between 740-1050 meter ...

and Ain Al-Basha.

Demographics

The population of districts according to census results:

Economy

Due to its fertile mountains, the governorate's economy is based on agriculture, as well as industry, such as the cement factory in

Fuheis Fuheis ( ar, الفحيص) is a Christian majority town in the central Jordanian governorate of Balqa. It lies in Wadi Shueib between Salt and Amman, at a distance of 6 and 13 kilometers respectively. It has an elevation between 740-1050 meter ...

, run by Jordan Cement Factories Ltd - Lafarge, and pharmaceutical companies including the

Arab Pharmaceutical Manufacturing The Arab Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Company (''APM'') is a pharmaceuticals and healthcare company based in Jordan. Its headquarters are located in Amman. APM was founded in 1962 and it operates two main production facilities, in Al Salalem and ...

company. There are two universities in the governorate:

Balqa Applied University Balqa may refer to the following places: *Balqa (region), the central highland region of Jordan where Amman is situated. *Balqa Governorate, one of the governorates of Jordan, covering the part of the Balqa region around the city of Salt. *Al-Balqa ...

(BAU), located near the Salt ring road, and

Al-Ahliyya Amman University Al-Ahliyya Amman University (AAU) (or Amman University, or Amman Private University) is located in Amman, Jordan. Founded in 1990, it was the first private university in Jordan. King Abdullah. (2011). ''Our Last Best Chance: The Pursuit of Peac ...

(AAU) located on the main highway between

and Salt. It is also home to the

SESAME Sesame ( or ; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a flowering plant in the genus ''Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cu ...

facility, the first research facility of its type in the Middle East.

Gallery

File:Mahis late winter.JPG, The town of

File:Fuheis2.JPG,

, one of the municipalities of Balqa Governorate

References

{{Authority control Governorates of Jordan