Under the Umayyad Caliphate, nobles and wealthy families belonging to the Umayyad dynasty erected new complexes or adapted preexisting ones for a multitude of purposes, many being suggested: to control the roads, monitor and tax the seasonal movement of people and their livestock, impress travellers and local tribes, establish nuclei for the development of new cities, develop agriculture in semi-arid areas, and enjoy desert retreats for relaxation and hunting (see Desert castles).

[1] The most substantial prehistoric remains are from the Late Neolithic period (c. 7th–6th millennium BCE), when the lake was used by nomadic herders to pasture flocks of sheep and goat, probably in the summer months when water was scarce elsewhere.

[1][2][3][4] Archaeological excavations reveal that a Roman fort was established on the site and a monastery was built there during the Byzantine period.

[9] Qasr Burqu' is located in the far northeast of Jordan and is one of a number of Umayyad desert castles in the semi-arid region.

[15] Rock-carved inscriptions show that Bedouin tribes used the site as a seasonal encampment each spring throughout the Medieval period.