Mafraq

Mafraq is the capital of Mafraq Governorate in northern Jordan, roughly 80 km north of Amman. Its Arabic name means "crossroads", a fitting description for a city that has long connected routes toward Syria to the north and Iraq to the east.

Human settlement in the area dates to the 4th century BC, and the town was once known as Fudain, from the Arabic word for fortress. About 17 km to the east lies Umm el-Jimal, a UNESCO-listed Nabataean, Roman, Byzantine and early Islamic settlement with well-preserved basalt ruins. The Hejaz Railway and a British military base and airfield brought new importance to Mafraq in the early 20th century, and the town became a base for the Arab Legion around 1948.

Today Mafraq is an administrative, military and university centre. It hosts the headquarters of the Jordanian Army's Third Division, the King Hussein Air College and air base, and Al al-Bayt University. The city centre remains a modest working town of local markets, shops and everyday Jordanian life rather than a polished tourist destination.

For travellers, Mafraq works best as a practical base or stopover for the eastern desert. It provides access to Umm el-Jimal, the Desert Castles of the eastern desert and the Azraq Wetland Reserve, and it sits on road links used by business, government and aid traffic moving through northern Jordan.