History
'Ain Ghazal, the origin of the spring the feeds the Zarqa river, is a major archaeological site, dating back to the Neolithic period. It was continuously occupied for more than two thousand years, and the earliest finds date to 7200 BCE. 'Ain Ghazal is one of the earliest known human settlements with evidence of domesticated animals. With a population of around 3,000 at its height, it was also one of the largest prehistoric population centers in the Near East, with about five time the population of neighboring Jericho. During a 1982 survey of the Zarqa valley, a number Early Iron Age sites were discovered, concentrated along the banks of the Zerqa and its tributaries. One of them, Tulul adh-Dhahab, is under further research now. Zarqa, Jordan's second largest city, is built on the banks of the Zarqa River, and is the largest settlement along its course. Today, most of the land and plantations on the riverbanks are owned by the heirs of the patrician El-wir clan, the rest is owned by Bani-Hassan tribe, and other local tribes. The town of Zarqa was founded in 1902 by Chechen immigrants. Its population grew rapidly with an influx of Palestinian refugees who fled the West bank during the Six-day war.
The Zarqa River also flows through Jerash. Inhabited since the Bronze Age, Jerash was an important Greco-Roman city (Gerasha), home to noted mathematician Nicomachus. The ruins of the city are well preserved and have been extensively excavated.
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