Giordania (Jordan)

Jordan (Arabic: الأردنّ‎ al-'Urdunn), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in Western Asia spanning the southern part of the Syrian Desert down to the Gulf of Aqaba. Jordan shares borders with Syria to the north, Iraq to the northeast, Saudi Arabia to the east and south, the Gulf of Aqaba to the southwest, and Israel and the West Bank to the west. It shares control of the Dead Sea with Israel. Much of Jordan is covered by desert, particularly the Arabian Desert; however the north-western area, with the Jordan River, is regarded as part of the Fertile Crescent. The capital city of Amman is in the north-west. During its history, Jordan has seen numerous civilisations, including such ancient eastern ones as the Canaanite and later other Semitic peoples such as the Edomites, and the Moabites. Other civilisations possessing political sovereignty and influence in Jordan were: Akkadian, Assyrian, Judean, Babylonian, and Persian empires. Jordan was for a time part of Pharaonic Egypt, the Hasmonean Dynasty of the Maccabees, and also spawned the native Nabatean civilisation which left rich archaeological remains at Petra. Cultures from the west also left their mark, such as the Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Turkish empires. Since the seventh century the area has been under Muslim and Arab cultures, with the exception of a brief period when the west of the area formed part of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and a short time under British rule. The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is a constitutional monarchy with representative government. The reigning monarch is the head of state, the chief executive and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The king exercises his executive authority through the prime ministers and the Council of Ministers, or cabinet. The cabinet, meanwhile, is responsible before the democratically elected House of Deputies which, along with the House of Notables (Senate), constitutes the legislative branch of the government. The judicial branch is an independent branch of the government. Jordan is a modern Arab nation with a predominately middle class population that lacks the vast wealth of some of its neighbors. Jordan's population is 92% Sunni Muslim with a small Christian minority. Jordanian society is predominantly urbanized and very ethnically diverse. Jordan is classified as an emerging market by the CIA factbook. Jordan is a pro-Western regime that has very close relations with the West especially with the United States, the United Kingdom and France. Jordan is one of only two Arab nations, the other being Egypt, that has relations with Israel. It is a founding member of the Arab Leagueand the CAEU, a member of the OIC, the WTO, the AFESD, the Arab Parliament[, the AIDMO, the AMF, the IMF, the International Criminal Court[, the UNHRC, the GAFTA, the ESCWA, the ENP and the United Nations. La Giordania o Regno Hascemita di Giordania (المملكة الأردنية الهاشمية o al-Mamlaka al-Urdunniyya al-Hāshimiyya) è uno Stato del Medio Oriente (Asia). Confina a nord con Siria, a nord-est con Iraq, a sud-est e a sud con Arabia Saudita, a sud-ovest col Mar Rosso, a ovest con Israele e Territori Palestinesi. È indipendente dal 1946 e la sua forma di governo è la monarchia costituzionale. Il re attuale è ʿAbd Allāh II, figlio del popolarissimo Husayn. Situata nella regione storica della Mezzaluna fertile, la Giordania è però in gran parte costituita da deserti e ampi altopiani. Si può dividere in tre zone principali: la Valle del Giordano, l'altopiano della Transgiordania e il deserto. L'altopiano della Transgiordania corrisponde alla zona dove sono situati i principali centri urbani, Amman, Zarqʿa, Irbid, e Karak, ed è il luogo di maggior interesse turistico vista la presenza dei più importanti siti archeologici come Jerash, Karak, Madaba e Petra, una delle sette meraviglie del mondo moderno. La regione desertica occupa circa i due terzi del Paese, in questa zona, si trova la cima più alta della Giordania, il Jebel Rum alto 1754 m. Il fiume Giordano fa da confine con Israele ed è l'unica vera risorsa d'acqua superficialeL'unico fiume di rilievo è il Giordano, storicamente conteso con Israele, che sfocia nel Mar Morto. Lo sbocco meridionale sul mar Rosso ha come porto principale ʿAqaba. Font : Wikipedia