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Dhuweila (also spelled Dhuweilah, Dhuweileh, or Duhhuweila) is one of the best-known prehistoric sites in Jordan’s eastern basalt desert (the Black Desert, or Harrat al-Sham). Unlike the farming villages of the Jordan Valley or the limestone highlands, Dhuweila was an arid-zone hunting and seasonal occupation site centered on wetlands and springs. It is important because it documents how prehistoric people adapted to marginal desert environments long before and during the early Neolithic.

One important distinction is that Dhuweila is not primarily a classic PPNB farming village. The site has occupations spanning the Late Epipalaeolithic (especially the Harifian tradition) and into the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA), with some later prehistoric activity. It is therefore better understood as a seasonal camp and aggregation site than as a permanently occupied agricultural settlement.

Dhuweila lies in the Eastern Badia (Black Desert) of Jordan
about 110–140 km east of Amman. Northeast of the Azraq Oasis. Far from the Dead Sea and Petra. Within the volcanic basalt plateau of the Harrat al-Sham. It occupies one of Jordan’s desert outskirt regions where prehistoric people concentrated around seasonal water sources.

Occupation belongs to: Period Approximate Date
Late Epipalaeolithic (Harifian) 10.8 to 9.6 thousand BCE
Early PPNA 9.6 to 9 thousand BCE
Later prehistoric occupations intermittent
Unlike sites such as ‘Ain Ghazal, Basta, or Abu Suwwan, there is no substantial Middle or Late PPNB village with large rectilinear architecture.

Environment 10,000 Years Ago
The eastern Badia looked quite different during the terminal Pleistocene and Early Holocene. Rainfall was somewhat higher, seasonal lakes formed after winter rains, grasslands expanded, wild cereals occurred in favourable years and wetlands attracted large game. However, it remained considerably drier than western Jordan.

Unlike Mediterranean woodland regions, pistachio, oak and almond forests were not present immediately around Dhuweila.

The immediate landscape was dominated by steppe grasses, Artemisia (sagebrush), chenopods, desert shrubs and ephemeral flowering plants

Wild pistachio, almond and fig may have been acquired through seasonal mobility or exchange, but there is no direct evidence they were growing.

Unlike PPNB villages, Dhuweila shows little evidence of established farming
Current evidence suggests no large-scale wheat cultivation, no established barley agriculture and continued reliance on gathering wild grasses This distinguishes it from contemporary western Levant villages.

Sheep and Goat Farming
Domestic sheep and goats are not securely documented during the principal occupation. Instead, hunting dominated. Important prey included: gazelle, hare, birds, wild equids and fox. Some researchers have proposed very early animal management during later occupations, but hunting clearly remained the principal economic activity.

Architecture was relatively light
Excavations revealed circular stone-built structures, small huts, windbreaks, hearths, paved activity surfaces and outdoor work areas. Buildings were substantially smaller than those of PPNB villages.

They were probably roofed with brushwood, reeds, hides and light timber carried from wetter regions

Ritual or Communal Buildings
No monumental ceremonial buildings have been identified. Dhuweila appears to have been a practical seasonal settlement. Likely centred on hunting, food preparation and tool manufacture. Rather than large monuments or ritual.

Flint Industry
The lithic assemblage is exceptionally rich. Recovered tools include: Harif points, El-Khiam points, projectile points, blades, burins, scrapers, drills, backed bladelets and even sickle elements (rare). Most flint came from local desert sources. The abundance of hunting equipment reflects the site’s economic focus.

Stone tools included small axes, adzes and cutting tools.

Wood was probably imported or collected from wadis, where tamarisk, acacia and other shrubs grew
No preserved doors, beams or furniture have survived.

Among the site’s distinctive discoveries are: large concentrations of gazelle bones, stone-lined hearths, intensive flint knapping areas and seasonal occupation surfaces
These illustrate repeated use of the site by highly mobile hunter-gatherers.

Because the site is primarily a hunting camp, faunal and lithic evidence has received much greater research attention than plant remains.

Dhuweila is significant because it demonstrates that the Neolithic transition in the Levant was not uniform. While communities in the Jordan Valley and Mediterranean uplands were experimenting with cultivation and permanent villages, groups in the eastern desert continued to thrive through seasonal mobility, specialized hunting, and flexible settlement patterns. It illustrates an alternative adaptation to the changing climates of the Early Holocene.

References: Garrard, A. N., & Byrd, B. F. (2013). Beyond the Fertile Crescent: Late Palaeolithic and Neolithic Communities of the Jordanian Steppe. Oxbow Books.

Betts, A. V. G. (Ed.). (1998). The Harra and the Hamad: Excavations and Surveys in Eastern Jordan. Sheffield Academic Press.

Garrard, A. N., Betts, A. V. G., Byrd, B. F., & colleagues. Publications on the Eastern Badia and Dhuweila.

Rollefson, G. O., & Simmons, A. H. (1988). The Neolithic Period of Jordan.

Kuijt, I., & Goring-Morris, N. (2002). Foraging, Farming, and Social Complexity in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic of the Southern Levant. Journal of World Prehistory.