Rania Al-Abdullah

Rania Al-Abdullah (born Rania Al-Yassin, 31 August 1970) is Queen of Jordan as the wife of King Abdullah II. ¹

Her domestic activities include education, youth, environmental and health initiatives. Globally, she has campaigned for education and cross-cultural dialogue, and she has authored three children's books: The Sandwich Swap, The King's Gift and Eternal Beauty. ¹

Rania Al-Yassin was born on 31 August 1970 in Kuwait to Jordanian parents of Palestinian origin. Her father, Faisal Sidqi Al-Yassin, was from Tulkarm and her mother, Ilham Rasekh, from Nablus; the family had relocated to Kuwait after the 1967 war, and her father worked there as a children's doctor. ^{1 2}

She graduated from the New English School in Kuwait in 1991 and earned a degree in business administration from the American University in Cairo. She then worked briefly in marketing for Citibank, followed by a job with Apple Inc. in Amman. The family had relocated to Jordan following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990. ¹

She married Abdullah, then a prince, on 10 June 1993. When he acceded to the throne on 7 February 1999 she became queen; her proclamation as queen followed on 22 March 1999. ^{1 3}

Rania founded the Jordan River Foundation in 1995, before her husband's accession. Its Jordan River Children Program placed children's welfare above political agendas and cultural taboos and led in 1998 to a Child Safety Program addressing children at risk of abuse and campaigning to raise public awareness of violence against children. After the deaths of two children from abuse in early 2009, she called an emergency meeting of government and non-government stakeholders to discuss where the system was failing. ¹

Her work in Jordan centres on education, youth, environment and health initiatives, and she is among the Arab world's most prominent advocates of children's and women's rights. ^{1 2}

Globally, she has campaigned for education for all and for cross-cultural dialogue. Describing Islam in a 2016 interview, she stated that it is a religion of peace, tolerance and mercy, and a source of comfort and strength for more than 1.6 billion Muslims. ¹

In 2008 she launched a YouTube channel inviting viewers to send their stereotypes of Arabs and Muslims, and over five months posted videos on subjects including honour killings, terrorism and the rights of Arab women; she had earlier discussed misconceptions about Islam, especially women in Islam, on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2006. ¹

She has authored three children's books: The Sandwich Swap, The King's Gift and Eternal Beauty. ¹

She and King Abdullah have four children; the eldest is Crown Prince Hussein. ^{2 1}

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