Tafilah Governorate

Tafilah Governorate (محافظة الطفيلة)
Governorate
Location of Tafilah Governorate
Nickname: The land of Edom
Country	Jordan
Cities	Busaira, Al-Hasa
Capital	Tafilah
Area	2,209 km2 (853 sq mi)
Population	89,400 (2012)
Density	40.5/km2 (105/sq mi)
Timezone	GMT +2
- summer (DST)	+3
Area code	+(962)3

Tafilah (Arabic: الطفيلة‎‎) is one of the governorates of Jordan, located about 180 km south-west of Amman, Jordan's capital.

Tafilah Governorate is bordered by Karak Governorate to the north, Ma'an Governorate to the east and south, Aqaba Governorate to the south, and by Israel to the west. The area of this province constitutes 2.5% of the area of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. It is divided into three departments. The population as of 2005 is about 82,000 (i.e. 1.6% of Jordan's population in 2005) living in 32 towns and villages across the governorate ( making it the least populated governorate of Jordan ).

Tafilah Governorate has been inhabited by the Edomites since the 11th century B.C. The entire land covered by Tafilah Governorate was the stronghold of the Edomites with the town of Busaira as the capital of Edom. The valley known as Wadi Al-Hasa formed the boundary between Edom and the neighboring kingdom of Moab in present-day Karak Governorate. Currently Wadi Al-Hasa forms the boundary between Tafilah and Karak Governorates, and itself belongs administratively to Karak Governorate.

Almost all towns in Tafilah Governorate date back to the Edomite period, the capital city of Tafilah held the Edomite name of Tophel.

Edom often allied with Moab and Ammon, and later with the Nabataeans until their fall to the Roman Empire.