Ajloun also written (Ajlun) (Arabic: عجلون‎) is the capital town of the Ajloun Governorate (although it is not the largest city in the governorate). A hilly town in the north of Jordan, located 76 kilometers (around 47 miles) north west of Amman. It is noted for its impressive ruins the 12th century castle which known nowadays as Ajlun Castle. The Ajlun Governorate has a population of over 130 thousand widespread in twenty seven villages and towns and area about 420 km². The population of Ajlun Governorate is mainly composed of the following tribes:Al-Sharee(الشرع), Almomani, Alsmadi, Qudah, Freihat, Al-Zghoul , and others. Haddad and Rabadi are the main Christian tribes in Ajloun.Ajloun ate has four seats in the national parliament one of which is dedicated for the christian minority.

According to the Jordan national census of 2004, the population of the town of Ajloun was 7,289. Ajlun Governorate is about 131,000. Muslims make up the majority of Ajlun's population, there are Christian minority groups in the city as well. The governorate of Ajlun is highly agricultural, as the population distibution tells.

Ajlun Castle is located on the site of an old monastery. It was built in 1184 by Izz al-Din Usama, a general in the army of Saladin. The castle controlled traffic along the road connecting Damascus and Egypt. The fortress marks the furthest limit of Frankish incursions during the Crusades. The Mamluks added a prominent tower to the castle. It was captured by the Mongols in 1260 and was partially destroyed in the process.

Located in the center of Ajlun is the Great Ajlun Mosque. This mosque is one of the oldest extent in Jordan and dates back around 800 years. In 2007 work began on improving the mosque to allow tourists to visit it.

Tell Mar Elias is located just outside the city limits. This site contains Byzantine mosaics which are uncovered during the summer months for tourists.

The Ajloun Forest Reserve is also located nearby.

The Ajlun mountains are famous for their lush vegetation and thick green forests and a good place for hikes. Its highest mountain peaks reach around 1268 meters above sea level and Ajloun mountains receive a few snow storms every year usally in winter season from December to March. It's one of the countries most beautiful regions. Ajlun has a Mediterranean weather rainy and snowy in winter season and pleasant in the summer time.

 

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Azraq

Azraq (Arabic: الأزرق‎) is a small town in the province of Zarqa Governorate in central-eastern Jordan, 100km east of Amman. The population of Azraq was 9021 persons in 2004

History of Azraq

Demographics of Azraq

Wildlife reserve in Azraq

Wadi Mujib is a gorge in Jordan which enters the Dead Sea at 410 meters below sea level. The Mujib Reserve of Wadi Mujib is the lowest nature reserve in the world, located in the mountainous landscape to the east of the Dead Sea, approximately 90 km south of Amman. The 220 square kilometers reserve was created in 1987 by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature and is regionally and internationally important, particularly for the bird life that the reserve supports. It extends to the Kerak and Madaba mountains to the north and south, reaching 900 meters above sea level in some places. This 1,300 meter variation in elevation, combined with the valley's year round water flow from seven tributaries, means that Wadi Mujib enjoys a magnificent biodiversity that is still being explored and documented today. Over 300 species of plants, 10 species of carnivores and numerous species of permanent and migratory birds have been recorded until this date. Some of the remote mountain and valley areas are difficult to reach, and thus offer safe havens for rare species of cats, goats and other mountain animals.

During the last Ice Age the water level of the Dead Sea reached 180 m below sea level, about 230 m higher than it is today. It flooded the lower areas of the canyons along its banks, which became bays and begun to accumulate sediments. As the climatic conditions changed, about 20,000 years ago, the water level of the lake dropped, leaving the re-emergent canyons blocked with lake marl. Most canyons managed to cut through their plugged outlets and to resume their lower courses. However, Wadi Mujib, the biblical Arnon River, abandoned its former outlet by breaking through a cleft in the sandstone. This narrow cleft became the bottleneck of an enormously large drainage basin with a huge discharge. During the years the cleft was scoured deeper and the gorge of Wadi Mujib was formed.

The Mujib reserve consists of mountainous, rocky, and sparsely vegetated desert (up to 800 m), with cliffs, gorges and deep wadis cutting through plateaus. Perennial, spring-fed streams flow down the wadis to the shores of the Dead Sea which lies 400 m below sea-level.

The slopes of the mountaineous land are very sparsely vegetated, with a steppe-type vegetation on plateaus. Groundwater seepage does occur in places along the Dead Sea shore, for example at the hot springs of Zara, which support a luxuriant thicket of Acacia, Tamarix, Phoenix and Nerium, and a small marsh. The less severe slopes of the reserve are used by pastoralists for the grazing of sheep and goats.

The hot springs of Hammamat Ma'in lie close to the borders of the reserve are heavily used for tourism/recreation.

The Jordanian military have a temporary camp in the south of the reserve.

A large dam was recently finished at the bottom of the wadi, where the modern road crosses the river. As a result, a large lake has formed. Today, Wadi Mujib is fed by seven tributaries.