Lost cities, Bible stories, untainted heritage, Lawrence of Arabia and much more - Jordan is immersed with romantic associations. It's one of the prominent countries that should to be drenched with tourists.

Jordan occupies an area rich in archaeological remains and religious traditions. The Jordanian desert was home to hunters from the Lower Paleolithic Period; their flint tools have been found widely distributed throughout the region. In the southeastern part of the country, at Mount At-Tubayq, rock carvings are found from several antediluvian periods, the earliest of which have been attributed to the Paleolithic-Mesolithic era. The site at Tulaylat al-Ghassul in the Jordan Valley of a well-built village with painted plaster walls may represent transitional developments from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic period.

Jordan has often been a gathering point of diverse cultures and peoples and is in dead-centre Biblical territory. The land that became Jordan forms part of the richly historical Fertile Crescent region. Its history began around 2000 B.C., when Semitic Amorites settled around the Jordan River in the area called Canaan. Subsequent invaders and settlers included Hittites, Egyptians, Israelites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arab Muslims, Christian Crusaders, Mameluks, Ottoman Turks, and, finally, the British. This historical diversity has perhaps led to a higher degree of cultural tolerance than would be expected in the region.

When King Abdullah I was first installed, the country now known as Jordan didn't look the way it now does. Jordan first took Aqaba from al-Hijaz, and then expanded its boundary exchange with Saudi Arabia to give up a considerable area of desert and get closer to Aqaba.

At the end of World War I, the territory now comprising Israel, Jordan, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and Jerusalem was awarded to the United Kingdom by the League of Nations as the mandate called "Palestine Trans-Jordan." In 1922, the British, with the League's approval under the terms of the Mandate, partitioned Palestine at the Jordan River and established the semi-autonomous Emirate of Trans-Jordan in those territories to the east. The British installed the Hashemite Prince Abdullah I while continuing the administration of separate Palestine and Trans-Jordan under a common British High Commissioner. The mandate over Trans-Jordan ended on May 22, 1946; on May 25, the country became the independent Hashemite Kingdom of Trans-Jordan. It ended its special defense treaty relationship with the United Kingdom in 1957.

King Hussein’s health had been in decline throughout the 1990s and he died of cancer in February 1999. Prince Abdullah had been chosen to take over upon his death. During his first year in office, Abdullah adopted a more populist style than his father but there has been little change in the substance of policy.

Jordan is a land steeped in history. It has been home to some of mankind's earliest settlements and villages, and relics of many of the world's great civilizations can still be seen today. As the intersection of the Middle East, the lands of Jordan and Palestine have served as a strategic link connecting Asia, Africa and Europe. Thus, since the dawn of civilization, Jordan's geography has given it an imperative role to play as a conduit for trade and communications, connecting east and west, north and south. Jordan continues to play this role today and day by day, Jordan is striding through the modern era of technological breakthroughs, industrial developments and media and advertising innovations.