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This is a list of all verifiable organizations that claim to be a Masonic Grand Lodge in Asia.
A Masonic "Grand Lodge" (or sometimes "Grand Orient") is the governing body that supervises the individual "Lodges of Freemasons" in a particular geographical area, known as its "jurisdiction" (usually corresponding to a sovereign state or other major geopolitical unit). Some are large, with thousands of members divided into hundreds of subordinate lodges, while others are tiny, with only a few members split between a handful of local lodges. Sometimes there will only be one Grand Lodge in a given area, but the majority of the time there will be at least two. More often, there will be several competing Grand Lodges claiming the same jurisdictional area, or claiming overlapping areas. This fact leads to debates over legitimacy: Not all Grand Lodges and Grand Orients recognize each other as being legitimate. However, such recognition is not relevant to this list, yet recognition is foundational within the fraternal order. Inclusion in this list only requires the establishment of a physical (as opposed to a virtual, or online) presence, and lodges (regular, unrecognized or clandestine) which acknowledge their governance.
Membership numbers are subject to change; for current figures, check the sources which are indicated in the reference section.
Country/Region | State or other geographical area | Name | Founded | Lodges | Members | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
China (Republic of) | Grand Lodge of China, F. & A.M. [1] [2] | 1949 | 13 | 567 [3] | ||
Hong Kong | District Grand Lodge of Hong Kong and the Far East [4] [5] | 1846 | 20 | A unit of the United Grand Lodge of England [4] | ||
Hong Kong | Provincial Grand Lodge of the Far East [5] [6] | 1899 [7] | 7 [7] | A unit of the Grand Lodge of Ireland [6] | ||
Hong Kong | Japan, Korea, and the Philippines | District Grand Lodge of the Far East [5] [8] | 11 [9] | A unit of the Grand Lodge of Scotland [8] | ||
India | Provincial Grand Lodge of Ireland In India [10] [11] | 1754 | A unit of the Grand Lodge of Ireland | |||
India | Grand Lodge of India A.F.& A.M. [1] [12] | 1961 | 360 | 19,205 [3] | ||
India | District Grand Lodge of India [13] [14] | 1842 | A unit of Grand Lodge of Scotland | |||
India | Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala | District Grand Lodge of Madras [4] [15] | 1767 | 18 | A unit of the United Grand Lodge of England [4] | |
India | Bombay | District Grand Lodge of Bombay [4] [16] | A unit of the United Grand Lodge of England [4] | |||
India | Bengal | District Grand Lodge of Bengal [4] [17] | A unit of the United Grand Lodge of England [4] | |||
India | Northern India | District Grand Lodge of Northern India [4] [18] | A unit of the United Grand Lodge of England [4] | |||
India | Maharashtra | Freemasonry in Mumbai [4] [19] | A unit of the United Grand Lodge of England [4] | |||
Israel | Grand Lodge of the State of Israel A.F. & A.M. [1] [20] | 1953 | 52 [3] | 2,000 [21] | ||
Israel | The Grand Lodge Jerusalem of Freemasons in Israel. [22] [23] | 2013 | 8 | |||
Israel | Le Droit Humain – Israeli Jurisdiction [24] [25] | 1989 | DH | |||
Japan | Grand Lodge of Japan [1] [26] | 1957 | 16 | 1,753 [3] | ||
Kazakhstan | Grand Lodge of Kazakhstan [27] | 2016 | 4 | 50 | Formed with support of Grand Lodge of Russia from their lodges in Kazakhstan | |
Lebanon | Grand Lodge of F.&A.M of Lebanon | 2018 | Formed by Lodges working under the District Grand Lodge of Lebanon (GL of F.&A.M of New York) and received official support and charter from the Grand Lodge of New York on October 24, 2018, In 2023, the Conference of Grand Masters of North America declared that the Grand Lodge of Lebanon formed by the Grand Lodge of New York is Irregular as its formation is deemed illegal. [28] | |||
Lebanon | District Grand Lodge of Lebanon [29] [30] | 1860 | 10 | 250+ | Under the Jurisdiction of The Grand Lodge of Antient, Free and Accepted Masons of Scotland | |
Lebanon | District Grand Lodge of Syria & Lebanon [31] | 1912 | 12 | 350+ | Under the Jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of New York | |
Lebanon | The Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia – 2 Active Lodges in Lebanon [32] | 2010 | 2 | 50+ | Under the Jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Washington, D.C. | |
Philippines | Rizal Masonic Temple 1316 Cavite St. Tondo, Manila | Gran Logia Soberana del Archipielago Filipino A∴&A∴S∴R∴ (Rito Escoces Antiguo y Acceptado) | 1887-1926 (under GOE) 1926-Present (Sovereign) | 68 | 500+ | The true lineage of Grande Oriente Español. Website: https://granlogiasoberanaph.com |
Philippines | Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of the Philippines [1] [33] | 1912 | 349 | 22,896 [3] | ||
Philippines | Independent Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of the Philippine Islands [34] | 2006 [35] | 14 [36] | |||
Philippines | Gran Logia Nacional de Filipinas / Supremo Consejo 33 para Filipinas | 1919 Grande Oriente Español – July 4, 1924 Gran Logia Nacional de Filipinas https://glnf.ph/historia/ | 12 | 1000+ | International Confederation of the United Grand Lodges / Confederation Internationale Des Grandes Unies www.acaciamagazine.org/html/icucgl website : www.glnf.ph | |
Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand | District Grand Lodge of the Eastern Archipelago [37] | 1858 [38] | A unit of the United Grand Lodge of England | |||
Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand | Provincial Grand Lodge of South East Asia [39] | 2009 [40] | 8 [41] | A unit of Grand Lodge of Ireland | ||
Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand | District Grand Lodge of the Middle East [42] | 1916 [43] | 22 [43] | A unit of the Grand Lodge of Scotland | ||
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 14th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities and clients. Modern Freemasonry broadly consists of two main recognition groups: Regular Freemasonry, which insists that a volume of scripture be open in a working lodge, that every member professes belief in a Supreme Being, that no women be admitted, and that the discussion of religion and politics do not take place within the lodge; and Continental Freemasonry, which consists of the jurisdictions that have removed some, or all, of these restrictions.
The history of Freemasonry encompasses the origins, evolution and defining events of the fraternal organisation known as Freemasonry. It covers three phases. Firstly, the emergence of organised lodges of operative masons during the Middle Ages, then the admission of lay members as "accepted" or "speculative" masons, and finally the evolution of purely speculative lodges, and the emergence of Grand Lodges to govern them. The watershed in this process is generally taken to be the formation of the first Grand Lodge in London in 1717. The two difficulties facing historians are the paucity of written material, even down to the 19th century, and the misinformation generated by masons and non-masons alike from the earliest years.
In Freemasonry, regularity is one of the factors by which individual Grand Lodges judge whether to recognise one another for the purposes of allowing formal interaction at the Grand Lodge level and visitation by members of other jurisdictions. Each individual Grand Lodge determines which other Grand Lodges it considers Regular.
The Grand Orient de France (GODF) is the oldest and largest of several Freemasonic organizations based in France and is the oldest in Continental Europe. The Grand Orient de France is generally regarded as the "mother lodge" of Continental Freemasonry.
The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales, and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic Grand Lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron Tavern in London, it is considered to be the oldest Masonic Grand Lodge in the world, together with the Grand Lodge of Scotland, and the Grand Lodge of Ireland.
The Grand Lodge of Ireland is the second most senior Grand Lodge of Freemasons in the world, and the oldest in continuous existence. Since no specific record of its foundation exists, 1725 is the year celebrated in Grand Lodge anniversaries, as the oldest reference to Grand Lodge of Ireland comes from the Dublin Weekly Journal of 26 June 1725. This describes a meeting of the Grand Lodge to install the new Grand Master, The 1st Earl of Rosse, on 24 June. The Grand Lodge has regular Masonic jurisdiction over 13 Provincial Grand Lodges covering all the Freemasons of the island of Ireland, and another 11 provinces worldwide.
Freemasonry in Sweden was introduced by the Swedish Order of Freemasons, founded in 1735 as the oldest still active Swedish fraternal order, working the Swedish Rite of Freemasonry. It is under royal patronage of the King of Sweden and closely associated with the Lutheran Church of Sweden. It is a jurisdiction that admits Christian men only, and is recognised by the United Grand Lodge of England as a Regular Masonic jurisdiction, being the only Regular Grand Lodge that admits a 34th informal Masonic Degree. Its total membership is about 16,500.
This is a general survey on the historical and modern presence of Freemasonry in countries located in Asia.
This is a chronology of the formation of "regular" or "mainstream" Masonic Grand Lodges in North America, descending from the Premier Grand Lodge of England or its rival, the Antient Grand Lodge of England. A Grand Lodge is the governing body that supervises "Craft" Freemasonry in a particular jurisdiction or geographical area.
The Grand Lodge of British Freemasonry in Germany is a Masonic Grand Lodge in Germany working in the English language and following English Masonic traditions. It was founded as a District Lodge in 1957 and after various transformations was eventually recognised as Grand Lodge in 1980. This Grand Lodge is one of the five United Grand Lodges of Germany (VGLvD). It currently has members from a variety of nations and in addition to the "resident members" in Germany, there are "non-resident members" all over the world. Currently, 19 lodges work under the GL BFG, mainly in North Rhine-Westphalia, but also in Lower Saxony, Hamburg, Munich, Berlin and also near Frankfurt.
Freemasonry in Germany started in several places during the second quarter of the Eighteenth century. After the extinction of the Rite of Strict Observance, which had a wide following and claimed Templar origins for its higher degrees, the several Grand Lodges in Germany defied all attempts at unification, although a largely ineffectual central organisation came into being with the unification of Germany. During the 1920s Freemasons were harassed alongside Jews by those taken in by the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, and blamed for the German surrender of 1918. This culminated with the suppression of Freemasonry by the Nazis in 1935, with many Masons in Germany and occupied countries being executed or sent to concentration camps. Freemasonry returned to Germany after World War Two. A single central body now represents five "regular" Grand Lodges. Liberal, women's, and mixed lodges also exist.
Freemasonry in Scotland in lodges chartered by the Grand Lodge of Scotland comprises the Scottish Masonic Constitution as regular Masonic jurisdiction for the majority of freemasons in Scotland. There are also lodges operating under the Scottish Masonic Constitution in countries outside of Scotland. Many of these are countries linked to Scotland and the United Kingdom through the Commonwealth of Nations and prior colonies and other settlements of the British Empire although there are several lodges in countries such as Lebanon, Belgium, Chile and Peru, which do not have such connections.
The history of Freemasonry in Ghana can be traced to the early nineteenth century when the first Masonic lodge was consecrated in the country. The practice of Freemasonry was imported to the then Gold Coast and other Commonwealth realms by European residents in the nation during the British colonial era. Most of the lodges in Ghana are governed by the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) and Wales, Grand Lodge of Scotland and the Grand Lodge of Ireland. Similar to their sister organisations worldwide, Ghanaian masonic fraternities are nonsectarian, with proceedings of the societies being strictly apolitical and non–religious.