Location:
Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia, between Israel (to the west) and Iraq

Geographic coordinates:
31 00 N, 36 00 E

Map references:
Middle East

Area:
total: 89,342 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 88,802 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 540 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 113

Area - comparative:
about three-quarters the size of Pennsylvania; slightly smaller than Indiana
Area comparison map: about three-quarters the size of Pennsylvania; slightly smaller than Indiana

Land boundaries:
total: 1,744 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (5): Iraq 179 km, Israel 307 km, Saudi Arabia 731 km, Syria 379 km, West Bank 148 km

Coastline:
26 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 3 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]

Climate:
mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April)
More Climate Details

Terrain:
mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates eastern and western banks of the Jordan River

Elevation:
mean elevation: 812 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: Dead Sea -431 m highest point: Jabal Umm ad Dami 1,854 m

Natural resources:
phosphates, potash, shale oil

Land use:
agricultural land: 11.4% arable land 2%; permanent crops 1%; permanent pasture 8.4%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 1.1%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 87.5% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
964 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
population heavily concentrated in the west, and particularly the northwest, in and around the capital of Amman; a sizeable, but smaller population is located in the southwest along the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba

Natural hazards:
droughts; periodic earthquakes; flash floods

Environment - current issues:
limited natural freshwater resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
strategic location at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba and as the Arab country that shares the longest border with Israel and the occupied West Bank