Zarqa, Jordan

Transportation | Industry | Education

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Zarqa is the capital of Zarqa Governorate in Jordan. Its name means "the blue (city)". It is the most populous city in Jordan after Amman. Zarqa is located in the Zarqa River basin in north-east Jordan. The city is situated 15 miles (24ย km) north-east of Amman.

Although inhabited since the 1st century, the city of Zarqa was established in 1902 by Chechen immigrants who were displaced from the wars between the Ottoman and Russian Empires. They settled along the Zarqa River. At that time a station on the Hejaz Railway was built in the new settlement. The railway station turned Zarqa into an important hub. On 10 April 1905, the Ottoman governor issued a decree that allowed the Chechen immigrants to own lands which they settled on. The population then quickly grew in size. On 18 November 1928, the new Jordanian government issued a decree to establish the first municipal council for Zarqa.

After the Transjordan Frontier Force was formed in 1926, military bases were constructed in the city by the British Army and the city later became known as the "military city". The headquarters of Jordan's Arab Legion was in Zarqa.

The city of Zarqa is divided into five districts that all together have an area of about 60ย kmยฒ (23ย sqย mi) and another two districts within the radius of influence of the city.

Transportation Zarqa is connected by the Hejaz Railway to Amman to the south and to Syria to the north. A new railway is under construction to connect Amman with Zarqa.

Zarqa lies on the international highway that connects Saudi Arabia with Syria and on the international Amman-Baghdad highway.

Industry Zarqa is Jordan's industrial centre. It is home to over 50% of Jordanian factories. The growth of industry in the city is the result of low real estate costs and proximity to the capital Amman.

Several facilities that are vital to Jordan's economy are based in Zarqa, such as Jordan's only oil refinery plant. According to the Zarqa Chamber of Commerce, 10% of Jordan's total exports in 2011 came from Zarqa Governorate, amounting to more than US$512 million. Leather and garment products constituted about 52% of Zarqa'a exports, followed by chemical, agricultural and pharmaceutical products.

In September 2020, massive explosions occurred at an army munitions depot for mortars near Zarqa, caused by an electric short circuit.

Education There are three universities in Zarqa, the largest of which is Hashemite University. The other two are Al-Balqa` Applied University and Zarqa University. Other community colleges and research centres are based in Zarqa such as the Al-Zarqa Educational & Investment. Also, there are many secondary schools (or high schools) in Zarqa, most notably is the Zarqa Secondary School for Boys which is considered one of the oldest high schools in Jordan.

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

Zarqa has a population of over 635,160 people. Zarqa also forms the centre of the wider Zarqa Governorate which has a population of over 951,800 people.

To set up a UBI Lab for Zarqa see: https://www.ubilabnetwork.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/UBILabNetwork

Twin Towns, Sister Cities Zarqa has links with:

๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ฟ Oran, Algeria
Text Atribution: Wikipedia Text under CC-BY-SA license

Antipodal to Zarqa is: -143.9,-32.083

Locations Near: Zarqa 36.1,32.0833

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Amman 35.939,31.952 d: 21  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Jerash 35.883,32.267 d: 28.8  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Salt 35.733,32.033 d: 35  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Al-Salt 35.733,32.033 d: 35  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Deir Alla 35.6,32.183 d: 48.4  

๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ด Irbid 35.842,32.559 d: 58.2  

๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡พ Daraa 36.11,32.626 d: 60.3  

๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡พ Izra 36.233,32.833 d: 84.3  

๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡พ As-Suwayda 36.567,32.7 d: 81.4  

๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ธ Nablus 35.276,32.226 d: 79.2  

Antipodal to: Zarqa -143.9,-32.083

๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ซ Papeete -149.566,-17.537 d: 18300.4  

๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡ธ Pago Pago -170.701,-14.279 d: 16652.3  

๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ด Nuku'alofa -175.216,-21.136 d: 16687.5  

๐Ÿ‡ผ๐Ÿ‡ธ Apia -171.76,-13.833 d: 16533.2  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Hilo -155.089,19.725 d: 14132.3  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Maui -156.446,20.72 d: 13993.6  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Kahului -156.466,20.891 d: 13974.6  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Wailuku -156.505,20.894 d: 13973.4  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Maui County -156.617,20.868 d: 13973.6  

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Honolulu -157.85,21.3 d: 13896.3  

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