Humayma is located in the northern Hisma, Jordan's southern desert
region, about 80km southwest of the modern town of Ma'an.
The ruins cover an area of approximately 1km^2, adjacent to the east
face of the sandstone hills Jebel Qalkha and Jebel Humayma. The fort
itself covers an area of 150m by 200m in a wide, gently sloping
valley. Wind-blown soils cover most of the site, giving the region a
light loessal soil. 

Humayma (ancient Hawara) was founded by the Nabataeans around 80 BC as
a settlement center for the nomadic tribes.  After the
invasion of Arabia by Roman forces in the 2nd century AD, a fort was
built north of the settlement of Humayma, on slightly higher ground.
The fort and adjacent Roman structures appear to have been built away
from the existing Nabataean settlement center; however, excavations
indicate the presence of Nabataean walls underneath Roman buildings in
areas south of the fort.