Aqaba, July 15 (Petra) -- In the coastal city of Aqaba, the ancient stone ruins do more than speak of the past; they document continuous chapters of Jordan's history from the dawn of the Islamic era to the modern state.

Among the surviving walls, streets, and old markets of Islamic Ayla City lies the story of a region that has served for millennia as a crossroads of civilizations, a transit route for global trade, and a cradle of cultural tolerance.

Maher Al-Amareen, director of the Aqaba Antiquities Directorate, told the Jordan News agency, Petra, that Islamic Ayla is the first planned Islamic city established outside the Arabian Peninsula after the early Islamic expansion into the Levant. This gives the site exceptional historical and urban significance, representing an early model of Islamic town planning and a strategic trade hub linking the Levant, the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt, and East Africa.

"Ayla is one of Jordan's most prominent archaeological sites because it reflects the emergence of early Islamic urban centers designed with an integrated vision," Al-Amareen said. "It embodies a historical narrative proving that Jordan has always hosted diverse civilizations, religions, and cultures."

Excavations have revealed a rectangular walled city fortified with defensive towers, featuring a grid of streets, markets, residences, and workshops. These discoveries offer a vivid picture of economic and social life in one of the Red Sea's most vital commercial hubs during the early Islamic centuries. The city served as a key transit point for trade caravans arriving from the Arabian Peninsula, Yemen, Egypt, and the Levant, while also integrating with maritime trade routes across the Red Sea.

Sawsan Al-Fakhiri, an archaeological expert and researcher specializing in Aqaba's heritage, said Ayla is not merely an archaeological site but a living historical text. It highlights Jordan's role as a geographic bridge connecting successive eras, including the Edomite, Nabataean, Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic periods, leading up to the Great Arab Revolt and the modern Jordanian state.

"Ayla represents the early roots of administrative and economic organization on the Red Sea coast, proving that this land was a cornerstone for regional stability and state-building," Al-Fakhiri said.

This historical depth extends beyond trade and architecture to academic scholarship. Ancient Ayla was home to a prominent early school of Islamic jurisprudence and Hadith studies. The famous early scholar Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri owned an estate there, mentoring local scholars who went on to propagate knowledge across the region.

Al-Fakhiri added that Ayla offers an early historical model of peaceful coexistence. The Islamic city was constructed adjacent to the existing Byzantine city without displacing it, allowing both to co-exist and integrate economically.

The roots of this coexistence date back to the covenant concluded between the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and Yūḥannah Ibn Ru’bah, the governor of Ayla, which established early principles of security, protection for local populations, and safe passage for maritime and land trade.

"Recalling the history of Ayla within Jordan's modern narrative sends a message to the world that our modern state is built on a continuous legacy of trade, knowledge, and tolerance," Al-Fakhiri said.

//Petra// AF

15/07/2026 22:57:38