Salt, Jordan

For other meanings of the word Salt, see Salt (disambiguation)

Salt (Arabic: As-Salt) is an ancient agricultural town and administrative centre in west-central Jordan. It is on the old main highway leading from Amman to Jerusalem. Situated in the Al-Balqa` highland, about 790–840 metres above sea level, the town is built on two hills, one of which is the site of a 13th century ruined fortress. The town was considered to be the capital of the East Bank, of the Jordan River.

The town was known as Saltus in Byzantine times and was the seat of a bishopric. Salt was later destroyed by the Mongols and then rebuilt by the Mamluk sultan Baybars I (reigned 1260-1277).

In the early 1830s, Salt was again attacked, this time being blown up by the Egyptian viceroy Ibrahim Pasha during the campaigns against Palestine.

After World War I, the town was the site which Herbert_Samuel, British high commissioner for Palestine and Transjordan, chose to make his announcement that the British favoured self-government for Jordan (which was granted in August 1920).

Salt is famous in Jordan for the quality of its grape harvest, and indeed it is speculated that the town's name provided the root for the English word for dried raisins, Sultana.