Country name:
conventional long form: Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
conventional short form: Jordan
local long form: Al Mamlakah al Urduniyah al Hashimiyah
local short form: Al Urdun
former: Transjordan
etymology: named after the Jordan River, which makes up part of Jordan's northwest border
Government type:
constitutional monarchy
Capital:
name: Amman
geographic coordinates: 31 57 N, 35 56 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Friday in March; ends last Friday in October
Administrative divisions:
12 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); 'Ajlun, Al 'Aqabah, Al Balqa', Al Karak, Al Mafraq, Al'Asimah, At Tafilah, Az Zarqa', Irbid, Jarash, Ma'an, Madaba
Independence:
25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 25 May (1946)
Constitution:
previous 1928 (preindependence); latest initially adopted 28 November 1947, revised and ratified 1 January 1952; amended several times, last in 2014 (2015)
Legal system:
mixed legal system of civil law and Islamic religious law; judicial review of legislative acts in a specially provided High Tribunal
International law organization participation:
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Citizenship:
citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Jordan
dual citizenship recognized: yes
residency requirement for naturalization: 15 years
Citizenship
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]
Executive branch:
chief of state: King ABDALLAH II (since 7 February 1999); Crown Prince HUSSEIN (born 28 June 1994), eldest son of King ABDALLAH II
head of government: Prime Minister Abdullah NSOUR (since 11 October 2012)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch
elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch
Legislative branch:
description: bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the Senate, or the House of Notables or Majlis al-Ayan (60 seats; members appointed by the monarch to serve 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or House of Representatives or Majlis al-Nuwaab (150 seats; 108 members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 27 directly elected in a single national constituency by proportional representation vote, and 15 seats reserved for women; members serve 4-year terms); note - the electoral law enacted in July 2012 allocated an additional 10 seats - 6 for women, 2 for Amman, and 1 seat each for the cities of Zarqa and Irbid; unchanged are 9 seats reserved for Christian candidates, 9 for Bedouin candidates, and 3 for Jordanians of Chechen or Circassian descent
elections: Chamber of Deputies - last held on 23 January 2013 (next election 2017); note - the King dissolved the previous Chamber of Deputies in November 2012, midway through the parliamentary term
election results: Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - 27 elected on closed national list including: Islamic Centrist Party 3, Nation 2, National Union 2, Stronger Jordan 2, Ahl al-Himma 1, Al-Bayyan 1, Citizenship 1, Construction 1, Cooperation 1, Dawn 1, Dignity 1, Free Voice 1, Labor and Trade 1, National Accord Youth Block 1, National Action 1, National Current 1 (member resigned in February 2013), National Unity 1, Nobel Jerusalem 1, Salvation 1, The People 1, Unified Front 1, Voice of Nation 1; other 123; note - the IAF boycotted the election
Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Court of Cassation or Supreme Court (consists of 7 judges including the chief justice; 7-judge panels for important cases and 5 judge panels for most appeals cases)
judge selection and term of office: chief justice appointed by the king; other judges nominated by the Higher Judicial Council and approved by the king; judge tenure NA
subordinate courts: courts of appeal; magistrate courts; courts of first instance; religious courts; State Security Court
Political parties and leaders:
Ahl al-Himma
Al-Bayyan
Al-Hayah Jordanian Party [Zahier AMR]
Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party [Akram al-HIMSI]
Ba'ath Arab Progressive Party [Fuad DABBOUR]
Citizenship
Construction
Cooperation
Dawn
Democratic People's Party [Ablah ABU ULBAH]
Democratic Popular Unity Party [Sa'id DIAB]
Dignity
Du'a Party [Muhammed ABU BAKR]
Free Voice
Islamic Action Front or IAF [Hamzah MANSOUR]
Islamic Centrist Party [Muhammad al-HAJ]
Jordanian Communist Party [Munir HAMARNAH]
Jordanian National Party [Muna ABU BAKR]
Jordanian United Front [Amjad al-MAJALI]
Labor and Trade
Muslim Center Party [Haitham ALAMAERAH]
Nation
National Accord Youth Block
National Action
National Constitution Party [Ahmad al-SHUNAQ]
National Current Party [Abd al-Hadi al-MAJALI]
National Movement for Direct Democracy [Muhammad al-QAQ]
National Union
National Unity
Nobel Jerusalem
Risalah Party [Hazem QASHOU]
Salvation
Stronger Jordan
The Direct Democratic Nationalists Movement Party [Nash'at KHALIFAH]
The Homeland (Hizb Al-Watan)
The People
Unified Front
United Front
Voice of the Nation; qtgan
Political pressure groups and leaders:
15 April Movement [Mohammad SUNEID, chairman]
24 March Movement [Mu'az al-KHAWALIDAH, Abdel Rahman HASANEIN, spokespersons]
1952 Constitution Movement
Anti-Normalization Committee [Hamzah MANSOUR, chairman]
Economic and Social Association of Retired Servicemen and Veterans or ESARSV [Abdulsalam al-HASSANAT, chairman]
Group of 36
Higher Coordination Committee of Opposition Parties [Said DIAB]
Higher National Committee for Military Retirees or HNCMR [Ali al-HABASHNEH, chairman]
Hirak
Jordan Bar Association [Saleh al-ARMUTI, chairman]
Jordanian Campaign for Change or Jayin
Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood [Dr. Hamam SAID, controller general]
Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]
National Front for Reform or NFR [Ahmad OBEIDAT, chairman]
Popular Gathering for Reform
Professional Associations Council [Abd al-Hadi al-FALAHAT, chairman]
Sons of Jordan
International organization participation:
ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, CD, CICA, EBRD, FAO, G-11, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Alia Hatough BOURAN (since 14 September 2010)
chancery: 3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 966-2664
FAX: [1] (202) 966-3110
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Alice G. WELLS (since 31 August 2014)
embassy: Abdoun, Al-Umawyeen St., Amman
mailing address: P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; Unit 70200, Box 5, DPO AE 09892-0200
telephone: [962] (6) 590-6000
FAX: [962] (6) 592-0163
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of black (top), representing the Abbassid Caliphate, white, representing the Ummayyad Caliphate, and green, representing the Fatimid Caliphate; a red isosceles triangle on the hoist side, representing the Great Arab Revolt of 1916, and bearing a small white seven-pointed star symbolizing the seven verses of the opening Sura (Al-Fatiha) of the Holy Koran; the seven points on the star represent faith in One God, humanity, national spirit, humility, social justice, virtue, and aspirations; design is based on the Arab Revolt flag of World War I
National symbol(s):
eagle; national colors: black, white, green, red
National anthem:
name: "As-salam al-malaki al-urdoni" (Long Live the King of Jordan)
lyrics/music: Abdul-Mone'm al-RIFAI'/Abdul-Qader al-TANEER
note: adopted 1946; the shortened version of the anthem is used most commonly, while the full version is reserved for special occasions
NOTE: The information regarding Jordan on this page is re-published from the 2016 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Jordan Government 2016 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Jordan Government 2016 should be addressed to the CIA.
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This page was last modified 27-Apr-16