The Department traces its beginnings to 1962, the year in which the University of Jordan was established. The first department to be established, the Department of Arabic Language and Literature has also been the first department of the University of Jordan to offer a Ph.D. Program. Its staff includes professors Emeritus, former heads of departments & deans as well as competent associate and assistant professors. Indeed, a good number of its members (four in all) have made it to the top, becoming presidents of the University and others head high-ranking institutions in the country. It also has a few M.A. and Ph.D students studying abroad. All staff members are highly qualified, holding their Ph.D. degrees from Arab, European and American universities, thus achieving a great degree of diversity and integration. The current number of staff is 30 from different ranks. The Department is also endeavoring to update its programs in the fields of linguistics, literature, and rhetoric and to keep abreast with recent developments in the Arab world and abroad. In addition, it has followed a steady policy of recruiting the most distinguished academics and of participating in local, regional, and international conferences. The Department organizes a bi-annual conference on one of the core-issues related to Arabic Linguistics and Literature. It has also, among other groups, organized three exhibitions for the Arabic Papyri. The first at Jordan University, the second at Yarmouk University, and the third at King Faisal center for Research and Islamic Studies in Saudi Arabia