The
Arabah (
Hebrew ??????????,
HaArava;
Arabic ???? ?????,
Wadi ?Araba), also known as
Aravah, is a section of the
Great Rift Valley lying between the
Dead Sea in the north and the
Gulf of Aqaba in the south. It includes nearly half of the border between
Israel to the west and
Jordan to the east.
The Arabah is 166&_160;km (103 miles) in length from the Gulf of Aqaba to the southern shore of the Dead Sea. Topographically, the region is divided into three sections. From the Gulf of Aqaba northward, the land gradually rises over a distance of 77&_160;km (48 miles), and reaches a height of 230 m (755 ft) above sea level, which represents the watershed divide between the Dead Sea and Red Sea. From this crest, the land slopes gently northward over the next 74&_160;km to a point 15&_160;km south of the Dead Sea. In the last section, the Arabah drops steeply to the Dead Sea, which at 417 m (1373 ft) below sea level, is the lowest point on earth (and historically falling).
The Arabah is very hot and dry and virtually without rain; consequently, it is only lightly populated. The Jordanian administrative district of Wadi Araba is reported to have a population of 6775.[1] Five major tribes comprise eight settlements on the Jordanian side. These tribes are Al-S'eediyeen (Arabic ??????????), Al-Ihewat (????????), Al-Ammareen (????????), Al-Rashaideh (????????), and Al-Azazmeh (????????), as well as smaller tribes of the Al-Oseifat (????????), Al-Rawajfeh (????????), Al-Manaja'h (????????), and Al-Marzaqa (???????), among others. The main economic activities for these Arabah residents revolve around herding sheep, agriculture, handicrafts, and the Jordanian Army.
On the Israeli side there are a few kibbutzim. The oldest kibbutz in the Arava is Yotvata, founded in 1957, and named for an ancient town in the area mentioned once in the Bible. Kibbutz Lotan, which is one of Israel's newest kibbutzim, has a bird-watching center.
