This article is about churches in full communion with the archbishop of Canterbury. For the Christian tradition originating in the Church of England, seeAnglicanism.
TheAnglican Communion (AC) is a Christiancommunion consisting of theautocephalous national and regional churches historically in full communion with thearchbishop of Canterbury in England, who has acted as a focus of unity, recognised asprimus inter pares ("first among equals"), but without formal authority in Anglican provinces outside of theChurch of England.[1] Most, but not all, member churches of the communion are the historic national or regionalAnglican churches.[2][3][4][5]
With approximately 85–110 million members in 2025,[6][7][8] among its 47 member churches,[9] it is the third[10] or fourth largest Christian communion of churches globally, after theCatholic,Eastern Orthodox, and, possibly,World Communion of Reformed Churches.[11][n 1] The Anglican Communion considers baptism to be "the traditional gauge" or definition for membership.[12]
Most members of the churches of the Anglican Communion live in theAnglosphere: a group of dozens of countries and regions that are predominantly English-speaking, often former British colonies or territories, many of which still voluntarily associate as members of theCommonwealth. Because of their historical link to England (ecclesia anglicana means "English church"), some of the member churches are known as "Anglican", such as theAnglican Church of Canada. Others, for example theChurch of Ireland and theScottish Episcopal andAmerican Episcopal churches, have official names that do not include "Anglican". Conversely, some churches that do use the name "Anglican" are not part of the Communion. These have generally disaffiliated over disagreement with the progress and direction of the broader Communion.
The Church of England has always thought of itself not as a new foundation but rather as a reformed continuation of the ancient "English Church" (Ecclesia Anglicana) and a reassertion of that church's rights. As such it was a distinctly national phenomenon. TheChurch of Scotland was formed as a separate church from the Roman Catholic Church as a result of theScottish Reformation in 1560 and the later formation of theScottish Episcopal Church began in 1582 (in the reign ofJames VI) over disagreements about the role of bishops.[21][22]
The Church of England was the established church not only in England, but in its trans-Oceanic colonies. Thus the only member churches of the present Anglican Communion existing by the mid-18th century were the Church of England, its closely linked sister church theChurch of Ireland (which also separated from Roman Catholicism under Henry VIII) and the Scottish Episcopal Church which for parts of the 17th and 18th centuries was partially underground (it was suspected ofJacobite sympathies).
The oldest-surviving Anglican church building outside the British Isles isSt Peter's Church inSt. George's, Bermuda, established in 1612 (though the actual building had to be rebuilt several times over the following century). This is also the oldest surviving non-Roman Catholic church in theNew World.[23] It remained part of the Church of England until 1978 when theAnglican Church of Bermuda was formed.
The enormous expansion in the 18th and 19th centuries of theBritish Empire brought Anglicanism along with it. At first all these colonial churches were under the jurisdiction of thebishop of London. After theAmerican Revolution, the parishes in the newly independent United States found it necessary to break formally from a church whosesupreme governor was (and remains) theBritish monarch. Thus they formed their own dioceses and national church, theEpiscopal Church in the United States of America, in a mostly amicable separation.[24]
At about the same time, in the colonies which remained linked to the crown, the Church of England began to appoint colonial bishops. In 1787,Charles Inglis (Bishop of Nova Scotia) was appointed with jurisdiction over all of British North America;[25] in time several more colleagues were appointed to sees in other provinces in present-day Canada. In 1814, abishop of Calcutta was appointed. In 1824 the first bishop was sent to theWest Indies. And in 1836 Australia received its first Anglican bishop. By 1840 there were still only ten colonial bishops in the Church of England; but this small beginning quickly facilitated the growth of Anglicanism around the world. In 1841, a "Colonial Bishoprics Council" was set up and soon many more dioceses were created.
In time, it became natural to group these into provinces and ametropolitan bishop was appointed for each province. Although it had at first been somewhat established in many colonies, in 1861 it was ruled that, except where specifically established, the Church of England had just the same legal position as any other church. Thus a colonial bishop and colonial diocese was by nature quite a different thing from their counterparts back home. In time bishops came to be appointed locally rather than from England and eventually national synods began to pass ecclesiastical legislation independent of England.
A crucial step in the development of the modern communion was the idea of theLambeth Conferences (discussed above).[26] These conferences demonstrated that the bishops of disparate churches could manifest the unity of the church in their episcopal collegiality despite the absence of universal legal ties. Some bishops were initially reluctant to attend, fearing that the meeting would declare itself a council with power to legislate for the church; but it agreed to pass only advisory resolutions. These Lambeth Conferences have been held roughly every ten years since 1878 (the second such conference) and remain the most visible coming-together of the whole communion.
The Lambeth Conference of 1998 included what has been seen byPhilip Jenkins and others as a "watershed in global Christianity". The 1998 Lambeth Conference considered the issue of the theology of same-sex attraction in relation to human sexuality. At this 1998 conference, for the first time in centuries, the primates of churches in many developing regions—including some from Africa, Asia and Latin America—prevailed over the bishops of more prosperous countries (many from the US, Canada and the UK) who had supported a more progressive interpretation of Anglican doctrine. Seen in this light, 1998 is a date that marked the shift from a West-dominated Christianity to one wherein the growing churches of "the two-thirds world" are predominant.[27]
Many of the provinces in developed countries have continued to adopt more liberal stances on sexuality and other issues, resulting in a number of de facto schisms, such as the series of splits which led to the creation of theAnglican Church in North America. Many churches are now infull communion with only some other church members of the Communion, but are not with others; however, most churches that have historically been members continue to claim to be part of the Anglican Communion.
On 16 October 2025, the chairman of theGlobal Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans,Laurent Mbanda, declared the future creation of a "Global Anglican Communion" independent from the See of Canterbury but also asserted "[they] have not left the Anglican Communion; [they] are the Anglican Communion."[30][31][32][33][34] "The statement outlining that plan was signed by one person, Rwanda Archbishop Laurent Mbanda, who serves as chair of GAFCON’s primate council."[35] Following the announcement, Mbanda stated that the announcement of the "Global Anglican Communion" was "closer to a rebrand than a new organization" and that they are reforming the existing Anglican Communion.[36][37] Bishops affiliated with GAFCON, in Kenya and Congo, responded that their provinces plan to remain a part of the existing structures of the Anglican Communion.[38][35]
Some effects of the Anglican Communion's dispersed authority have been differences of opinion (and conflicts) arising over divergent practices and doctrine in the various parts of the communion.[39] Disputes that had been confined to the Church of England could be dealt with legislatively in that realm, but as the communion spread into new countries and territories and across disparate cultures, controversies sometimes multiplied and intensified. These controversies have generally been of two types: liturgical and social.[40]
Rapid social change and the dissipation of British cultural hegemony over its former colonies contributed to disputes over the role of women, and the parameters of marriage and divorce. In the late 1970s, theContinuing Anglican movement produced a number of new church bodies in opposition towomen's ordination, prayer book changes, and the new understandings concerning marriage. Currently, seven provinces of the Communion, representing approximately 3% of Anglicans worldwide, do not ordain women as deacons, priests, or bishops; two ordain women only as deacons, 16 ordain women as deacons and priests but not as bishops, and 22 provinces, representing about "two thirds of Anglicanism," ordain women as deacons, priests, and bishops.[41] On 3 October 2025, it was announced that theCrown Nominations Commission had nominatedSarah Mullally, thebishop of London as the next archbishop of Canterbury, which will make her the first woman to serve as archbishop of Canterbury and as the "first among equals" within the Anglican Communion.[42][43] GAFCON Primates Council chairman (Laurent Mbanda) claimed a predominant reservation against women's ordination in the episcopacy.[44]
While individual Anglicans and member churches within the communion differ over the circumstances in which abortion should or should not be permitted,Lambeth Conference resolutions have consistently held to a conservative view on the issue. The 1930 conference, the first to be held since the initial legalisation of abortion in Europe (inRussia in 1920), stated:[46]
The Conference further records its abhorrence of the sinful practice of abortion.
The 1958 conference'sFamily in Contemporary Society report affirmed the following position on abortion[47] and was commended by the 1968 conference:[48]
In the strongest terms Christians reject the practice of induced abortion or infanticide, which involves the killing of a life already conceived (as well as a violation of the personality of the mother), save at the dictate of strict and undeniable medical necessity ... the sacredness of life is, in Christian eyes, an absolute which should not be violated.
The subsequent Lambeth Conference, in 1978, made no change to this position and commended the need for "programmes at diocesan level, involving both men and women ... to emphasise the sacredness of all human life, the moral issues inherent in clinical abortion, and the possible implications of genetic engineering."[49]
In the context of debates around and proposals for the legalisation ofeuthanasia andassisted suicide, the 1998 conference affirmed that "life is God-given and has intrinsic sanctity, significance and worth".[50]
More recently, disagreements over homosexuality have strained the unity of the communion as well as its relationships with other Christian denominations, leading to another round of withdrawals from the Anglican Communion.[51] Some churches were founded outside the Anglican Communion in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, largely in opposition to the ordination of openly homosexual bishops and other clergy and are usually referred to as belonging to theAnglican realignment movement, or else as "orthodox" Anglicans.[51] These disagreements were especially noted when TheEpiscopal Church (US) consecrated an openly gay bishop in a same-sex relationship,Gene Robinson, in 2003, which led some Episcopalians to defect and found theAnglican Church in North America (ACNA); then, the debate reignited when the Church of England agreed to allow clergy to enter into same-sexcivil partnerships, as long as they remained celibate, in 2005.[52] TheChurch of Nigeria opposed the Episcopal Church's decision as well as the Church of England's approval for celibate civil partnerships.[53]
According to the BBC, "The more liberal provinces that are open to changing Church doctrine on marriage in order to allow for same-sex unions includeBrazil,Canada,New Zealand,Scotland,South India,South Africa, theUS andWales".[54] In 2023, the Church of England announced that it will authorise "prayers of thanksgiving, dedication and for God's blessing for same-sex couples".[55][56][57] The Church of England also permits clergy to enter into same-sex civil partnerships.[58] In 2024, the Church of England's General Synod voted to support allowing clergy to enter in civil same-sex marriages.[59][60] In 2023, the Anglican Church of Southern Africa's bishops approved the drafting of prayers that could be said with same-sex couples and the draft prayers were published for consideration in 2024.[61][62][63] TheChurch of Ireland has no official position on civil unions, and one senior cleric has entered into a same-sex civil partnership.[64] The Church of Ireland recognised that it will "treat civil partners the same as spouses".[65] TheAnglican Church of Australia does not have an official position on homosexuality,[66] and each diocese is allowed to bless same-sex couples if they choose.[67] In 2025, theChurch in Wales electedCherry Vann as the Archbishop of Wales, making her the first woman to serve as Archbishop in the United Kingdom and the first openlyLGBTQ and partnered bishop to be aPrimate within the Anglican Communion.[68][69][70]
The conservative Anglican churches encouraging the realignment movement are more concentrated in the Global South. For example, theAnglican Church of Kenya, the Church of Nigeria and theChurch of Uganda have opposed homosexuality.[71]GAFCON, a fellowship of conservative Anglican churches, has appointed "missionary bishops" in response to the disagreements with the perceived liberalisation in the Anglican churches in North America and Europe.[72] In 2023, ten archbishops within the Anglican Communion and two breakaway churches in North America and Brazil from theGlobal South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA) declared a state of impaired communion with the Church of England and announced that they would no longer recognise the archbishop of Canterbury as the "first among equals" among the bishops in the Anglican Communion.[73] However, in the same statement, the ten archbishops said that they would not leave the Anglican Communion.[74] In 2024, the GSFA met again establishing "a new structure," no longer recognising the Archbishop of Canterbury "as thede facto leader" of the Anglican Communion, but the GSFA reiterated that they intend to remain in the Anglican Communion.[75] In 2025, after the Church in Wales elected the first openly lesbian and partnered Primate in the Anglican Communion, the GSFA criticized the appointment.[76]
Debates about social theology and ethics have occurred at the same time as debates on prayer book revision and the acceptable grounds for achieving full communion with non-Anglican churches.[77]
The Anglican Communion has no official legal existence nor any governing structure that might exercise authority over the member churches. There is an Anglican Communion Office in London, under the aegis of thearchbishop of Canterbury, but it serves only in a supporting and organisational role. The communion is held together by a shared history, expressed in itsecclesiology,polity andethos, and also by participation in international consultative bodies.
Three elements have been important in holding the communion together: first, the shared ecclesial structure of the component churches, manifested in anepiscopal polity maintained through theapostolic succession of bishops andsynodical government; second, the principle of belief expressed in worship, investing importance in approved prayer books and their rubrics; and third, the historical documents and the writings of early Anglicandivines that have influenced the ethos of the communion.
Originally, the Church of England was self-contained and relied for its unity and identity on its own history, its traditional legal and episcopal structure, and its status as anestablished church of the state. As such, Anglicanism was from the outset a movement with an explicitly episcopal polity, a characteristic that has been vital in maintaining the unity of the communion by conveying the episcopate's role in manifesting visible catholicity and ecumenism.
Early in its development following theEnglish Reformation, Anglicanism developed a vernacular prayer book, called theBook of Common Prayer. Unlike other traditions, Anglicanism has never been governed by amagisterium nor by appeal to one founding theologian, nor by an extra-credal summary of doctrine (such as theWestminster Confession of thePresbyterian churches). Instead, Anglicans have typically appealed to theBook of Common Prayer (1662) and its offshoots as a guide to Anglican theology and practise. This has had the effect of inculcating in Anglican identity and confession the principle oflex orandi, lex credendi ("the law of praying [is] the law of believing").
Protracted conflict through the 17th century, with radical Protestants on the one hand and Roman Catholics who recognised the primacy of the Pope on the other, resulted in an association of churches that was both deliberately vague about doctrinal principles, yet bold in developing parameters of acceptable deviation. These parameters were most clearly articulated in the various rubrics of the successive prayer books, as well as theThirty-nine Articles of Religion (1563). These articles have historically shaped and continue to direct the ethos of the communion, an ethos reinforced by its interpretation and expansion by such influential early theologians such asRichard Hooker,Lancelot Andrewes andJohn Cosin.
With the expansion of theBritish Empire and the growth of Anglicanism outside Great Britain and Ireland, the communion sought to establish new vehicles of unity. The first major expressions of this were theLambeth Conferences of the communion's bishops, first convened in 1867 byCharles Longley, the archbishop of Canterbury. From the beginning, these were not intended to displace the autonomy of the emerging provinces of the communion, but to "discuss matters of practical interest, and pronounce what we deem expedient in resolutions which may serve as safe guides to future action".[78]
One of the enduringly influential early resolutions of the conference was the so-calledChicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral of 1888. Its intent was to provide the basis for discussions of reunion with the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, but it had the ancillary effect of establishing parameters of Anglican identity. It establishes four principles with these words:[79]
That, in the opinion of this Conference, the following Articles supply a basis on which approach may be by God's blessing made towards Home Reunion:
(a) The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, as "containing all things necessary to salvation," and as being the rule and ultimate standard of faith.
(b) TheApostles' Creed, as the Baptismal Symbol; and theNicene Creed, as the sufficient statement of the Christian faith.
(c) The two Sacraments ordained by Christ Himself – Baptism and theSupper of the Lord – ministered with unfailing use of Christ'sWords of Institution, and of the elements ordained by Him.
(d) TheHistoric Episcopate, locally adapted in the methods of its administration to the varying needs of the nations and peoples called of God into the Unity of His Church.
The archbishop of Canterbury's role is strictly symbolic and unifying, while the communion's three international bodies are consultative and collaborative; their resolutions have no legal effect on the autonomous provinces of the communion. However, in combination those four bodies do function as "instruments of communion", because all churches of the communion participate in them. In order of antiquity, they are:
Thearchbishop of Canterbury functions as the spiritual head of the communion.[80] The archbishop is the focus of unity, because no Anglican church has historically claimed membership in the communion without being in communion with the archbishop of Canterbury. The current archbishop-designate isSarah Mullally.
TheLambeth Conference[81] (first held in 1867) is the oldest Anglican international consultative body. It is a forum for bishops of the communion to reinforce unity and collegiality, to discuss matters of mutual concern, and to pass resolutions intended to act as guidelines to the individual churches. It is held roughly every ten years and invitation is by the archbishop of Canterbury.
TheAnglican Consultative Council[81] (first met in 1971) was created by a 1968 Lambeth Conference resolution, and meets usually at three-yearly intervals. The council consists of representative bishops, other clergy and laity chosen by the 38 provinces. The body has a permanent secretariat, the Anglican Communion Office, of which the archbishop of Canterbury is president.
ThePrimates' Meeting[81] (first met in 1979) is a forum for international consultation and deliberation, first convened by ArchbishopDonald Coggan for "leisurely thought, prayer and deep consultation".[82]
Because there is no binding authority in the Anglican Communion, these international bodies are vehicles for consultation and persuasion. In the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, they have debated issues of conformity in doctrine, discipline, worship and ethics. The most controversial issues have related togender andsexuality: some provinces of the communion (particularly in Africa and Asia) object to the changing acceptance of LGBTQ+ individuals (particularly by the North American churches). This has led to disagreements on the churches' differing practices ofblessing same-sex unions, ordaining and consecrating priests and bishops who are (or have been) insame-sex relationships, and to the process by which changes were undertaken. Some churches have also objected to theordination of female priests and bishops. This debate is known as theAnglican realignment.
Those who objected condemned these changes as unscriptural, unilateral, and lacking prior agreement from the communion. TheAmerican Episcopal Church and theAnglican Church of Canada responded that their actions had been undertaken after lengthy scriptural and theological reflection, were legal according to their owncanons and constitutions, and made after extensive consultation with the provinces of the communion. The Primates' Meeting voted to request those two churches withdraw their delegates from the 2005 meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council. Canada and the United States decided to attend the meeting but without exercising their right to vote. They were not expelled or suspended; there is no mechanism in this voluntary association to suspend or expel an independent province of the communion. Because membership is based on a province's communion with Canterbury, expulsion would require the archbishop of Canterbury's refusal to be in communion with the affected jurisdictions. Following the recommendation of theWindsor Report,Rowan Williams (the then archbishop of Canterbury) established a working group to examine the feasibility of an Anglican covenant which would articulate the conditions for communion in some fashion.[83][needs update]
A world map showing the provinces of the Anglican Communion and Global Anglican Communion:
National churches, present in only one country
Episcopal Church of the United States
Church in the Province of the West Indies
Anglican Church in Central America
Anglican Church of the South America
Anglican Church of Southern Africa
Anglican Church of Mozambique and Angola
Province of the Anglican Church of the Congo
Church of the Province of Central Africa
Church of the Province of West Africa
Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East
Episcopal/Anglican Province of Alexandria
Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean
Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia
Church of the Province of Melanesia
Diocese of Gibraltar of the Church of England
Church of the Province of South East Asia
Extra-provincial to the Archbishop of Canterbury
No organised Anglican presence
TheChurch of Ireland serves both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and theAnglican Church of Korea serves South Korea and, theoretically, North Korea. Indian Anglicanism is divided into the Church of North India, and the Church of South India. The Diocese in Europe (formally the Diocese of Gibraltar in Europe), in the Province of Canterbury, is also present in Portugal and Spain. The Episcopal Church, USA-affiliated Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe has affiliates in Austria, Belgium, France, Georgia, Germany and Italy.
The Anglican Communion, which currently is experiencing impaired communion and division, consists of forty-two autonomousprovinces each with its ownprimate and governing structure and of five extra-provincials under the metropolitan authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury. These provinces may take the form of national churches (such as in Canada, Uganda, or Japan) or a collection of nations (such as theWest Indies, Central Africa, or Southeast Asia). TheChurch of England Yearbook reported 93,511,730 members of the Anglican Communion in 2024.[84] Excluding the United churches in South Asia, theWorld Christian Database estimated that the Anglican Communion had 94,613,000 members in 2020 with 63,497,000 in Africa, 23,322,000 in Europe, 3,698,000 in Oceania, 2,219,000 in North America, 958,000 in Latin America, and 909,000 in Asia.[85] The United Churches in South Asia include over 4,500,000 in South India, 2,300,000 in North India, 1,900,000 in Pakistan, and 22,600 in Bangladesh.[86][87][88][89][90][91]
In September 2020, the archbishop of Canterbury announced that he had asked the bishops of the Church of Ceylon to begin planning for the formation of an autonomous province of Ceylon, so as to end his current position asmetropolitan of the two dioceses in that country.[185]
In 2023, the Church of the Province of Central Africa approved a plan to subdivide into three new national provinces, so that churches in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe would become independent of each other, while churches in Botswana could form a fourth national province or be integrated into one of the other three national provinces being formed.[186]
In relation to the Church of the Province of West Africa, it was announced that "the process is in motion for Ghana to become an autonomous province, once it has fulfilled the conditions and guidelines set by the Anglican Communion."[187]
The churches of the Anglican Communion have traditionally held that ordination in thehistoric episcopate is a core element in the validity of clerical ordinations.[188] The Roman Catholic Church, however, does not recognise Anglican orders (seeApostolicae curae).[189] SomeEastern Orthodox churches have issued statements to the effect that Anglican orders could be accepted, yet have still reordained former Anglican clergy; other Eastern Orthodox churches have rejected Anglican orders altogether. In 1922, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople,Meletius IV, issued a statement recognising Anglican Holy Orders as valid through apostolic succession.[190] By 1946, five autocephalous Orthodox jurisdictions recognised the validity of Anglican Holy Orders, includingConstantinople,Alexandria,Jerusalem,Cyprus, andRomania.[191] This recognition was conditional.[191] TheChurch of Greece also recognised the validity of Anglican Orders; these recognitions have "not been rescinded."[190] However, in 1948, the Russian Orthodox Church responded that it would not recognise Anglican Orders unless recognition was given by a council of autocephalous Orthodox churches.[192] Orthodox bishopKallistos Ware explains this apparent discrepancy as follows:
Anglican clergy who join the Orthodox Church are reordained; but [some Orthodox churches hold that] if Anglicanism and Orthodoxy were to reach full unity in the faith, perhaps such reordination might not be found necessary. It should be added, however, that a number of individual Orthodox theologians hold that under no circumstances would it be possible to recognise the validity of Anglican Orders.[193]
^The Anglican Communion (AC) claims approximately 85 million members. The denominations that make up the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC), with their full members, collectively claim over 100 million members. Therefore, according to self-reported figures, the WCRC is larger than the AC, considering only full members. However, some sources indicate that the total membership of the AC churches is actually 110 million. This would make the AC larger than the WCRC, if only the WCRC's full members are counted. Among the WCRC's associate members are theChina Christian Council and theDisciples Ecumenical Consultative Council, which together represent over 40 million people. Therefore, if the WCRC's associate and affiliate members are counted, the WCRC has approximately 140 million members and surpasses any Protestant communion in the world. Therefore, the position of WCRC and AC as the third or fourth largest Christian communion depends on the number considered for the AC, as well as whether or not the associate and affiliate members of WCRC are included in the count.
^abcActive members are those who regularly attend worship services.
^abcSelf-identified members are those who identify as Anglican when asked about their religion. They include all active members, as well as those who, while not active members, still have some connection to Anglicanism.
^abcBaptized members are those who have received Anglican baptism. This number includes active members, self-identified members, and also those whodo not identify as Anglican in national censuses and independent surveys when asked about their religion. Some Anglican provinces continue to count as members people who have changed churches, changed religions, abandoned Christianity, and even deceased individuals in their baptized number.
^abcdefghijklmnopqThe national census does not report the number of members of this province. Data released by the denomination itself.
^The Anglican Church of New Zealand and Polynesia reports on its own website its 2013 Census membership figure of 459,711. However, the 2021 Census, the most recent, reported only 245,301 Anglicans in the country. This is, therefore, the number of self-identified Anglicans in the country. Goodhew (2017) reported that there are still Anglicans linked to the church in Fiji (6,600), Tonga (1,300), Samoa (340) and the Cook Islands (90). The combined number corresponds to 253,631 people. On the other hand, the book "Growth and Decline in the Anglican Communion: 1980 to the Present," published in 2010, estimated that the church has approximately 630,000 baptized members.
^The Anglican Church of Australia last published statistics in 2001, when it reported having 4,865,328 members. The 2021 Census reported that only 2,496,273 people self-identified as Anglican in the country.
^The Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil claimed to have 120,000 members in 2006. However, an independent study, carried out in 2009, published in 2012, reported that only 0.01% of the Brazilian population was Anglican in 2009, which corresponded, in that year, to 19,400 Anglicans. This number corresponds to just 16.16% of what the denomination declared to have in 2006.
^The 2021 Canada Census reported that there were 1,134,315 Anglicans in the country. The denomination's official statistics, however, reveal a much lower number. For this reason, the denomination's own statistics are considered reliable data.
^The 2018 Malawi Census reported that there were 410,633 Anglicans in the country. In 2010, according to a report by the Pew Research Center, 87% of Botswana's population was Christian and 2% of Christians in this country (35,380) were Anglicans. The same survey reported that 98% of the population of Zambia was Christian and 4% of the Christians in that country (547,624) were Anglican. Therefore, the sum of the independent statistics is higher than the number released by the denomination itself. For this reason, the statistics of the denomination itself are considered reliable.
^The Anglican Church of Central America reported having only 35,000 members in 2022. On the other hand, the bookGrowth and decline in the Anglican communion: 1980 to the present, published in 2010, estimated that the church represents about 126,000 baptized members.
^In 2010, according to a report by the Pew Research Center, 80% of the population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was Christian and 2% of the Christians in that country (1,055,456) were Anglican. This number is higher than that released by the denomination itself. For this reason, the statistics of the denomination itself are considered reliable.
^The Church of England claims 26 million baptized members. Of these, however, according to its 2024 statistics, only 1,019,000 are active members. According to data from the British Social Attitudes survey, in 2018, 14% of the UK population, or 9,304,400, identified themselves as members of the church. In 2023, the Bertelsmann Foundation estimated that 43% of the British population (whose total number was 68,490,000 that year) was Christian, and 53% of Christians identified as Anglican. According to this survey, 23% of British people were Anglican, corresponding to 15,752,700 people that year. Subtracting the number of self-identified Anglicans in Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, leaves 15,291,182 in England.
^The 2022 Republic of Ireland Census reported that there were 126,658 Anglicans in the country. The 2021 Northern Ireland Census reported that there were 219,788 Anglicans in the country. The numbers reported by the denomination itself are slightly lower. For this reason, the denomination's own statistics are considered reliable.
^The Anglican Church in Japan reported having only 22,000 members in 2022. On the other hand, the bookGrowth and decline in the Anglican communion: 1980 to the present, published in 2010, estimated that the church represents about 58,000 baptized members.
^The Anglican Church of Korea reported having only 65,000 members in 2006. On the other hand, the bookGrowth and decline in the Anglican communion: 1980 to the present, published in 2010, estimated that the church represents about 80,110 baptized members.
^The Anglican Church of Melanesia reported 200,000 members in 2006, its last published statistics. According to the 2020 Vanuatu Census, there were 35,923 Anglicans in the country, or 12.02% of the population. In 2019, the United States Department of State published a report on religious freedom in the Solomon Islands. It was estimated that 32% of the country's population was Anglican, or 231,026 people. For this reason, the denomination's own statistics are considered reliable. On the other hand, the book "Growth and Decline in the Anglican Communion: 1980 to the Present," published in 2010, estimated that the church represents approximately 409,000 baptized members.
^The Anglican Church of Mexico claimed to have 100,000 members in 2009. However, an independent survey in 2015 reported that there were only 20,000 Anglicans in the country.
^According to the U.S. National Institute of Statistics, in 2022, an estimated 2 percent of Mozambique's population, or 615,600 people, are Anglican. The Diocese of Angola reported that it had 115,000 members in 2019. Therefore, the estimated total membership is 768,200 people.
^The Church of Nigeria claims to have 18,000,000 members. However, in 2010, according to the Pew Research Center, 46% of the population of Nigeria was Christian and 9% of Christians in that country (6,897,240) were Anglicans. According to Andrew (2021), the number of people who self-identify as Anglican and practice would be 7,400,000. Another survey, by the University of Aberdeen, estimated in 2021 that the Church of Nigeria had 22,000,000 in 2015. In 2025, GAFCON reported that the Church of Nigeria had 25 million members.
^abcThis province does not publish its own statistics. Data from the latest national census.
^The Anglican Rwanda Church claims to have 1,500,000 members in 2025. However, in 2010, according to a report by the Pew Research Center, 93% of the Rwanda population was Christian and 4% of the Christians of this country (383,904) were Anglicans. According to Globethics, the denomination had 1,240,000 members, or 12% of the country's population.
^In 2025, according to statistics from the Scottish Episcopal Church itself for the year 2024, the denomination had 22,990 members (16,124 Communicant and 6,866 non-Communicant members). In the 2022 Scottish Census, 72,359 people identified as Anglican, including 45,063 who reported their religion as "Church of England," 15,735 who responded "Scottish Episcopal Church," 5,600 who responded "Episcopalian," 4,161 who responded "Anglican," 1,374 who responded "Church of Ireland" and 426 who responded "Church of Wales".
^The Anglican Church of South America reported having only 22,500 members in 2006. On the other hand, the bookGrowth and decline in the Anglican communion: 1980 to the present, published in 2010, estimated that the church represents about 46,100 baptized members.
^The Church of the Province of South East Asia estimated that it had 168,079 members in 2005. In 2017, new statistics were released, reporting 98,000 members.
^The Anglican Church of Tanzania reported 2,000,000 members in 2006. In 2010, according to a Pew Research Center report, 60% of Tanzania's population was Christian, and 10% of the country's Christians (2,685,600) were Anglicans. This number is higher than that reported by the denomination itself. For this reason, the denomination's own statistics are considered reliable. On the other hand, the book "Growth and Decline in the Anglican Communion: 1980 to the Present," published in 2010, estimated that the church has approximately 3,318,000 baptized members.
^abcInclude membership figures for Extraprovincial churches.
Subnotes
^Referring to itself as the Via Media, or the Middle Way in the English language, Anglicanism encompasses various theological and doctrinal identities, including Anglo-Catholic Anglicanism, Liberal Anglicanism, Evangelical Anglicanism and many others.
^The Church Missionary Society, originally called the Society for Missions to Africa and the East, was founded in 1799... Though later in date than the S.P.C.K. and the S.P.G. it became the first effective organ of the C. of E. for missions to the heathen... Its theology has been consistently Evangelical.[19]
^TheChair of St Augustine is the seat of the archbishop of Canterbury in their role as head of the Anglican Communion. Archbishops of Canterbury are enthroned twice: firstly as diocesan ordinary (and metropolitan and primate of theChurch of England) in the archbishop's throne, by thearchdeacon of Canterbury; and secondly as leader of the worldwide church in the Chair of St Augustine by the senior (by length of service) archbishop of the Anglican Communion. The stone chair is therefore of symbolic significance throughout Anglicanism.
Zurlo, Gina A. (2022).Global Christianity: a guide to the world's largest religion from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Academic.ISBN978-0-310-11361-4.
^abcSamuel, Chimela Meehoma (28 April 2020).Treasures of the Anglican Witness: A Collection of Essays. Partridge Publishing.ISBN978-1-5437-5784-2.In addition to his emphasis on Bible reading and the introduction to theBook of Common Prayer, other media through which Cranmer sought to catechize the English people were the introduction of the First Book of Homilies and the 39 Articles of Religion. Together with theBook of Common Prayer and the Forty-Two Articles (which were later reduced to thirty-nine), the Book of Homilies stands as one of the essential texts of the Edwardian Reformation, and they all helped to define the shape of Anglicanism then, and in the subsequent centuries. More so, the Articles of Religion, whose primary shape and content were given by Archbishop Cranmer and Bishop Ridley in 1553 (and whose final official form was ratified by Convocation, the Queen, and Parliament in 1571), provided a more precise interpretation of Christian doctrine to the English people. According to John H. Rodgers, they "constitute the formal statements of the accepted, common teaching put forth by the Church of England as a result of the Reformation."
^Anglican and Episcopal History. Historical Society of the Episcopal Church. 2003. p. 15.Others had made similar observations, Patrick McGrath commenting that the Church of England was not a middle way between Roman Catholic and Protestant, but "between different forms of Protestantism", and William Monter describing the Church of England as "a unique style of Protestantism, a via media between the Reformed and Lutheran traditions". MacCulloch has described Cranmer as seeking a middle way between Zurich and Wittenberg but elsewhere remarks that the Church of England was "nearer Zurich and Geneva than Wittenberg.
^"A brief history of CMS". Church Mission Society. 1999. Retrieved2 December 2012.Much of what we call the Anglican Communion today traces its origins to CMS work.
^Michael, Mark (17 October 2025)."Analysis: GAFCON Creates Global Anglican Communion".The Living Church.Boldly announcing that "the future has arrived," GAFCON, the Global South-based conservative renewal movement also known as the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, declared the creation of a "Global Anglican Communion" in an October 16 communiqué by its chairman, Archbishop Laurent Mbanda of Rwanda.
^Davidson, R. T. (ed.) (1889).The Lambeth Conferences of 1867, 1878, and 1888: With the Official Reports and Resolutions Together with the Sermons Preached at the Conferences. Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.
^The Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church, Seabury Press, 1979, p. 877
^Jeremy Morris,The Oxford History of Anglicanism, Volume IV: Global Western Anglicanism, c. 1910–Present (Oxford University Press, 2017), 320–22.ISBN9780192518262
^"Structure".Church of Bangladesh. 1 February 2012. Retrieved26 October 2025.
^abcdefghChurch of England Year Book 2020 : A Directory of Local and National Structures and Organizations and the Churches and Provinces of the Anglican Communion. Church House Publishing. 2019.ISBN9780715111574.
^abcdefghijklmGoodhew, David, ed. (2017).Growth and decline in the Anglican communion: 1980 to the present. Routledge contemporary ecclesiology (1st ed.). London New York: Routledge.ISBN978-1-4724-3364-0.
^Elliot, Neil (15 March 2024)."Dioceses of the ACC – by numbers".Numbers Matters. Retrieved17 March 2024.(Neil Elliot is the statistics officer for the Anglican Church of Canada.)
^Bearden, Robert E. L. Jr. (Winter 1945). "The Episcopal Church in the Confederate States".The Arkansas Historical Quarterly.4 (4):269–275.doi:10.2307/40018361.JSTOR40018361.
Avis, Paul (1998). "What is 'Anglicanism'?". In Booty, John E.;Sykes, Stephen; Knight, Jonathan (eds.).The Study of Anglicanism (rev. ed.). London: SPCK (published 2004). pp. 417–419.ISBN978-1-4514-1118-8.
Hebert, A. G.The Form of the Church. London: Faber and Faber, 1944.
Wild, John.What is the Anglican Communion?, in series,The Advent Papers. Cincinnati, Ohio: Forward Movement Publications, [196-].Note.: Expresses the "Anglo-Catholic" viewpoint.
