The Impact of Migratory Flows on Population Changes in Jordan: A Middle Eastern Case Study
| Date | 01 June 1990 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2435.1990.tb00145.x |
| Author | M. SAMHA |
| Published date | 01 June 1990 |
The Impact
of
Migratory
Flows
on
Population Changes
in
Jordan:
A
Middle Eastern Case Study
M.
SAMHA*
INTRODUCTION
Jordan is a country of modem creation, established under extremely severe geographical,
economic and political conditions, which have influenced the broad population features
of the country. Political fortunes of the area have been a dominant factor affecting the
population dynamics in Jordan. The most significant fact with regard to the population
growth in Jordan, in the last three decades, was the tripling
of
its number as a result of the
annexation of the West Bank and the inflow of Palestinian refugees, which increased the
population to about 1.25 million within a single year. It has been estimated that, in 1949,
the total population of the East Bank numbered about 400,000, and the number of
residents in that part of Palestine later incorporated into the Kingdom of Jordan was
approximately 400,000.
To
this population, 450,000 refugees were added, giving a total
of 1.25 million in 1949*.
According to a Census of Housing conducted in 1952, the total population of Jordan
was 1,329,174.
In
the nine-year period from 1952 to I96
1
(the first complete census was
conducted in 1961) the population increased by nearly 28.4%, from 1,329,174 to
1,706,226. These figures, however, do not tell the whole story: the 28.4% increase in less
than
10
years does not represent the growth of population by natural increase. Many
refugees left their camps and settled in various parts of the country.
In
1967, Jordan
received another shock when 395,000 refugees moved, both during and after the
Israeli-Arab War in June 1967, from the West Bank and Gaza Strip to the East Bank.
Thus, migration played a predominant part in the population growth
of
Jordan, which
has been a country where refugees and displaced persons form a majority of the
population. This fact was reflected in the I979 census figures, which showed 2.1 million
persons living in the East Bank, more than twice that of 1961. This means that the East
Bank has grown by 233% in less than 20 years (196
1-1
979) and more than tripled since
1952. (see Table 1, page 223).
*
Department
of
Demography, University
of
Jordan, Amman (Jordan).
215
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