Several hypotheses flowed about the name of this city which in Greek meant "stone, rock" and in Arabic "cut, cut" because the city was entirely carved into the red rock and saffron of the circus of Wadi Mousa. Nor is it known with accuracy the origin of the Nabatean people, founder of Petra and many other cities in the Middle East. Established mainly in desert regions, the Nabateans turned to trade in order to compensate for the lack of natural resources: the transport of myrrh. Incenses and spices allowed them to enrich themselves and to provide for their needs. They traced many commercial routes ensuring their control of the traffic of this region. Their wealth, which was ever increasing, ended up attracting the other powers of the time: Greeks, Seleucids, Hasmoneans. On 22 March 106, Trajan annexed the city, which from then on became part of the Provincia Arabia. Then it was the Byzantines and Ottomans who let the second part of the century slide into the second century.