Fuheis, Balqa Governorate, Jordan

History | Economy | Religion | Heritage | Al-Rowaq | Fuheis festival

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Fuheis is a city in the central Jordanian governorate of Balqa, just 20 km north-west of Amman. It lies in Wadi Shueib between Salt and Amman, approximately 850 meters above sea level. 87% are Jordanian citizens, 95% are Christians, and with a male-to-female ratio of 52:48. The population of Fuheis increases in the summer, as many of the town's residents who have emigrated to the United States and Europe return for their summer vacations. The town's elevation renders it cool enough to spend the summer comfortably. Fuheis is also famous for its traditional habits from singing and dancing (dabke), and for depending on its farms.

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History In 1838 Fuheis was noted located east of Al-Salt. The Jordanian census of 1961 found 2,946 inhabitants in Fuheis, of whom 2,391 were Christians.

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Economy Fuheis' economy has historically centered around agriculture. Most of Fuheis' population works in agriculture, trade, cement industry, service industry, and civil or office jobs. The olive industry is important to Fuheis' economy, along with orchards and vineyards. The cement factory - Jordan's largest - is by far the largest industry in Fuheis, employing about 70% of the town's population. Among its most important villages are al-Rahwa, Ras al-Jundi, and al-Suqariah, known for their farms and trees.

In 2010, German researchers from the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research implemented a demonstration facility for decentralised wastewater technology in Fuheis. The project was handed over to the management of Al-Balqa` Applied University.

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Religion Approximately 60% of the town's population belong to Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch, 35% are members of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Sunni Muslims and Armenian Orthodox Christians make up the rest 5% of the population. The Latin Parish of Fuheis established a secondary school during the Ottoman Period in 1885. Students of this school learned Arabic, Religion and Math. The school has since expanded, remaining open until today.

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Heritage Archaeological excavations in Fuheis uncovered a circular building from white limestone which dates back to the Iron Age and the Byzantine age. This building was repurposed as a church in the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods, and within the building is a blueprint of the church in addition to a number of graves that were built in the church's land. The excavations suggest that the area's water sources may have drawn many to the region or that the settlement had a military purpose. The ruins are surrounded by small dug wells and enclosed water closets which were connected by a spout carved from rock. In the same area, excavators found a carving on basalt rock in Greek letters and crosses carved into limestone.

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Al-Rowaq Fuheis' Rowaq Al-Balqa' district boasts hundred-year-old stone cottages in the old town, preserved by a local who bought an art gallery in the area and proceeded to buy several cottages near it, converting them to art-and-craft shops.

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Fuheis festival Fuheis Festival is an annually held event in Fuheis, and it is considered to be the second biggest festival in Jordan, after Jerash Festival.

They have celebrated their silver jubilee in 2016, where they have welcomed bands and artists from Jordan, Syria, Palestine and Lebanon to perform in concerts and poetry evenings.

Several artists and singers from across the region were invited to perform in the town, like: Wadih El Safi, Melhem Barakat, Sabah Fakhri, Fares Karam, Moeen Charif, Omar Al-Abdallat, George Kurdahi, Najwa Karam, and many more, and the variety of night events and activities attracts around 10,000 to 30,000 visitors yearly.

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Amman Time 
Amman Time
Image: Adobe Stock silver-john #77410790

Fuheis has a population of over 20,427 people. Fuheis also forms part of the wider Balqa governorate which has a population of over 428,000 people. Fuheis is situated 20 km north-west of Amman.

Twin Towns - Sister Cities Fuheis has links with:

๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ธ Beit Sahour, Palestine
Text Atribution: Wikipedia Text under CC-BY-SA license

Antipodal to Fuheis is: -144.233,-32.017

Locations Near: Fuheis 35.767,32.017

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Salt 35.733,32.033 d: 3.7  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Al-Salt 35.733,32.033 d: 3.7  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Amman 35.939,31.952 d: 17.8  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Deir Alla 35.6,32.183 d: 24.3  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Jerash 35.883,32.267 d: 29.8  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Zarqa 36.1,32.083 d: 32.2  

๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ธ Nablus 35.276,32.226 d: 51.8  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Irbid 35.842,32.559 d: 60.7  

๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ธ Al-Bireh 35.214,31.907 d: 53.6  

๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ธ Ramallah 35.206,31.903 d: 54.4  

Antipodal to: Fuheis -144.233,-32.017

๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ซ Papeete -149.566,-17.537 d: 18318.1  

๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡ธ Pago Pago -170.701,-14.279 d: 16683.2  

๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ด Nuku'alofa -175.216,-21.136 d: 16719.7  

๐Ÿ‡ผ๐Ÿ‡ธ Apia -171.76,-13.833 d: 16564.2  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Hilo -155.089,19.725 d: 14146.5  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Maui -156.446,20.72 d: 14008.5  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Kahului -156.466,20.891 d: 13989.5  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Wailuku -156.505,20.894 d: 13988.3  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Maui County -156.617,20.868 d: 13988.5  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Honolulu -157.85,21.3 d: 13911.9  

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