Wonder Woman of the Week: Queen Rania of Jordan

Queen Rania of Jordan stands at the crossroads of tradition and modernity, a figure shaped by displacement, education, and the quiet power of diplomacy. Born in 1970 to Palestinian parents in Kuwait, her early life was marked by mobility and adaptation, experiences that would later inform her public role. Educated in business administration at the American University in Cairo, Rania entered Jordanian society not as a royal by birth, but as a young professional who married then–Prince Abdullah in 1993. When he ascended the throne in 1999, Rania became queen consort at a moment when Jordan faced the pressures of globalization, regional conflict, and a rapidly growing youth population.