Ma'an

Official name	Ma'an
Native name	مدينة معان
Nickname	Capital of the Great Arab Revolt
Settlement type	City
Dot x	|dot_y =
Pushpin map	Jordan
Pushpin label position	bottom
Pushpin map caption	Location in Jordan
Coordinates region	JO
Subdivision type	Country
Subdivision name	Jordan
Subdivision type1	Governorate
Subdivision name1	Ma'an Governorate
Government type	Municipality
Leader title	Mayor
Leader name	Khalid Alshummary
Leader title1
Established title	Municipality established
Established date	1898
Established title2
Established title3
Unit pref	Imperial
Area total km2	7.5
Area land km2
Area metro km2	100
Population as of	2007
Population total	50,350
Population blank1 title	Ethnicities
Population blank2 title	Religions
Timezone	GMT +2
Timezone dst	+3
Elevation footnotes
Postal code type
Area code	+(962)3
Website	http://www.maan.gov.jo

is still operational until today.]] Ma'an () is a town in southern Jordan 218 km away from the capital Amman. It is the capital of Ma'an Governorate. Ma'an has a population of around 50,000. The city had a population of 22,989 in the 1992 census and is estimated as being about 50,000 as of 2007 according to the Ma'an Municipality. Civilizations with the name of Ma'an have existed since at least Nabatean times - the modern city is to the north and west of the ancient town. The city is an important transport hub situated on the ancient King's Highway and also on the modern Desert Highway. Ma'an was the site of clashes between the Jordanian army and Islamic groups in 2002 after the death of a U.S. diplomat.

History

in the pre-Islamic times Ma'an was inhabited by the Ghassanids, who installed Farwa Al-Juthamiyy as Emir on Ma'an. The Ghassanide kingdom was under the influence of the Byzantine Empire, and followed the Christian faith. After the Battle of Mu'tah, Farwa was accused of being muslim, the Ghassanids arrested Farwa and crucified him, near the Afra hot springs, in response, the newly formed muslim state in Medina, sent an army led by Ussama bin Zaid, who conquered Ma'an.

When the Umayyads took control of the muslim empire, Ma'an flourished, and is until today a major hub and a rest area for the pilgrims coming from Syria and Turkey on their way to Mecca. In 1559, the Ottomans built the Saraya fort in Ma'an, to be a rest area for the pilgrims going to Mecca. In 1902 the Ma'an train station connected the city to Damascus in Syria, and Medina in the Hejaz. Following the fall of Damascus to the French in 1920 after the Battle of Maysaloon, Emir Abdullah arrived to Ma'an to gather support and reorganize the Arab forces to reclaim Syria, on 5 January 1920, he issued a statement to call for war against the occupation of Syria, later in that year a small force was organized and named the Arab Army, and was the nucleus of the later to be known the Arab Legion.

Education

Al-Hussein Bin Talal University is the only university in Ma'an, it offers undergraduate degrees in engineering, arts, science, business administration, archaeology, education and nursing. The university is located on the outskirts of the City of Ma'an in the southern part of Jordan , 214 kilometers from the capital Amman . As such, a considerable part of AHU's mission is devoted to providing appropriate specializations and training programs that are desperately needed in the southern region, in general and Ma'an Governorate, in particular. Moreover, the university provides local community institutions with well-trained and qualified human resources, who are, in turn, expected to act effectively in the development of all sectors of their communities. Further and above all, the university attaches utmost priority to academic research and the educational process, which come at the heart of the university's mission.آ AHU, established in 1999 on a campus that was once a branch of Mu'tah University, was relocated to the new campus, 9 kilometers west of the City of Ma'an, in September 2004. The Master Plan of the permanent campus, which has adopted the international construction measures, was awarded the ISO accreditation in Spring, 2007.آ AHU comprises seven distinguished colleges which confer the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degrees in (38) academic specializations in addition to the postgraduate Diploma in both Education and Higher Administration. In addition to the currently working academic centers, namely, the Computer Center, Academic Faculty Professional Development Center and Nabataean Studies Center, the university is planning to establish a number of research centers concerned with the studies ofآ environment, desertification, mining, badia & rural affairs. In addition to the academic affairs, the university excels in sport, social and cultural activities. Such activities, which enrich students' experience and prepare them for future life, are carried out by numerous state-of-the-art facilities available at the campus. No doubt, these activities provide comprehensive student-welfare services that aim to enhance the trust-building measures between the university and the students so as to achieve the university's main mission in providing the local market with qualified personnel.

Economy

A new economic zone was established to encourage new industries to operate in the Ma'an Special Economic Zone. It is already bearing fruit.

Famous People From Ma'an

Bahjat Talhouni. Former Prime Minister

Suliman Arar سليمان_عرار. Former Minister of Interior

Yousef AlAthem يوسف_العظم. Poet. Former Member of Parliament

Tawfiq Kreishan. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs

Omar Maani. Mayor of Amman

Saad Abudayeh. Author. Chairman of the Political Science Department at the University of Jordan

Professor Arafat Awajan, Author of more than 60 international scientific research papers in ICT. Dean of the King Hussein School of Information Technology and former Director of the ICT center in the Royal Scientific Society - Amman - Jordan

Clans and Families from Ma'an

Ma'an has two main groups of clans, Al-Hejazeen (from Hejaz in Saudi Arabia) and Al-Shameen (from Sham or modern day Syria).

Al-Hejazeen

Kreishan(Al-Karasheen)clan is the largest in number of members

*Al-Hawarieen

*Abu Helalah [Al-Helalat]

*Al-Mar'ay

Talhouni

Al-Khatab

*Al khawaldah

*Abu khadigah

*Abu shanab

*Al Abatah

*Al nassar

*Al Matrook

Dwene'

Abaid

*Al-Shomry

*'Aledy

*Akleel

*Za'ary

**Al-Sharary

**Al-Shawish

**Kaba'a

**Al-Khawaldah

**Al-Sa'aidah

**Abu 'Audah

**Al-Shelby

**Al-Yaseen

**Jarar

**Shamut

**Al-Taweel

**Akhu 'Amerah

**Al-Khury

**Al-Kahwajy

Al-Sharfa clan, which is divided to:

*Zeen Al-'Abedeen

*Al-Khatab

*Al-Hejazy

Al-Bazai'a

Harara

Al-Bawab

Abu Rkhya

'Alian

Dwerj

Abdal Ghany

Al-Salahat clan, which is divided to:

*Al-Musa

*Al-Dauud

*Ramadan

Al-Fanatsah clan, which is divided to:

Abu Thwabah

Al-Maghreby

Al-Sakallah

Al-Maani

Abudayyeh

Abu Tawelah

Abu Saleh

Matouq

Al-Khateeb

Al-Shameeh

This is the second biggest clan where more than 50% of them are living now outside Maan mainly in Amman and Zarqa. It is divided into the following tribes

Al-Karamsah: including the families

* Al Awajan

* Al Tahhan

*aljamal

* Abu Zeit

* Al Rashaideh

* Al Marei

Al-Mahameed: Including the families

* Abu Karaki

* AL BAhari

Al-Hesaan: Including

* Al Assaf

* Abu Haianeh

* Al Fraij

* Al Matar

Al-Tahan

Al-Khurah

References

External links

Ma'an Discussion Forum

maani.info

MSN Map

Category:Populated places in Jordan