Zarqa is a city in northeast Jordan, about 25 miles (40 km) from Amman. It is the capital of the Zarqa Governorate. The city is an important industrial center in Jordan. The population of Zarqa is about 600,000.
Zarqa was founded in the late 1920s as a village for Palestinian refugees who had fled the violence associated with the creation of the State of Israel. The city's original name was Azraq, after the nearby Azraq oasis. The name was changed to Zarqa in the 1950s, in honor of Tawfiq Pasha, the Ottoman general who had captured the city from the rebels in 1916.
Zarqa is an important center for the production of textiles, pharmaceuticals, and food products. The city is also home to a number of factories that produce cement, glass, and aluminum.
Zarqa is a major transportation hub. The city is served by the Zar
