Jordanian Bedouin Kicked Out of Petra's Caves

It's a very common trait in these parts for Bedouin born before the mid-80s.

But several decades ago, the freshly independent Jordanian government took notice of Petra as a source of revenue. Strategies for relocating the Bedul since the 1960s have included ideas about returning them to farming so that Petra could become an open-air tourist museum, free from the incursions of its native inhabitants.

After World War I, Emir Abdullah (who presided over postwar Transjordan from 1921 through independence in 1946 until his death in 1951) met with the Bedul Sheiks in 1923. When asked whether they wished their territorial claims to Petra and its environs formally recorded, hence making them responsible for taxation (which they could not afford), they alternatively accepted government trusteeship of the land in return for a guarantee of traditional rights of occupation and use.

While international interest in Petra, intensified by tourism, increased throughout the 20th century, the Bedul continued their traditional activities of goat pastoralism and rainfall farming of wheat and barley. Even in the late 1980s, most of the farming was done without mechanization, the fields tilled with ards, and even harvested by hand.

By the late 1960s, a formal development plan for Petra National Park was funded by USAID, and U. S. National Park Service was enlisted to advise on the future of Petra. Relocation of the Bedul away from the most significant Nabataean monuments was advised at that time.

In the 1970s there was armed resistance against the Jordanian government's initiatives, which ultimately constructed a pair of government-built settlements in 1984/85.

On December 6, 1985, Petra was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The relocation process held several consequences the affects seen from this are both good and bad. On the bright side, the relocation process very much improved the living condition of the Bedouins in Petra. right now the Bedouins have a better life with more opportunities. for example, the most important aspect of Bedouin life is water, and therefor the affects of living in an urbanized  city make it much easier for drinking water in the desert without having to worry about your family being thirsty. 


However, even with all the positive that came with the modernization of the local Bedouin tribe, many people including myself still attempt to keep the old way of living intact. there are still those of us who live in cave inside Petra. even though we adapted to our environment and our therefor reaping all the benefits of modern life, we still keep our rich tradition of hospitality and love of nature alive.


the Bedouins still keep there culture and hospitality until this time, even if they live in cities or villages. this culture will never die. with the help of king abdullah, it is easier for every Jordanian in this country to live in peace, prosperity, and tradition.