From Bahai9

Contents 1 Chronological List of National and Regional Spiritual Assemblies 1.1 Explanatory information regarding the chronological list 1.1.1 Examples 1.2 Sources 1.3 Notes on completeness/accuracy of information 1.4 Formation of National and Regional Spiritual Assemblies 1.4.1 1923: 1.4.2 1924: 1.4.3 1925: 1.4.4 1930: 1.4.5 1931: 1.4.6 1934: 1.4.7 1947: 1.4.8 1948: 1.4.9 1951: 1.4.10 1953: 1.4.11 1956: 1.4.12 1957: 1.4.13 1958: 1.4.14 1959: 1.4.15 1961: 1.4.16 1962: 1.4.17 1964: 1.4.18 1966: 1.4.19 1967: 1.4.20 1969: 1.4.21 1970: 1.4.22 1971: 1.4.23 1972: 1.4.24 1973: 1.4.25 1974: 1.4.26 1975: 1.4.27 1977: 1.4.28 1978: 1.4.29 1980: 1.4.30 1981: 1.4.31 1982: 1.4.32 1983: 1.4.33 1984: 1.4.34 1985: 1.4.35 1988: 1.4.36 1989: 1.4.37 1991: 1.4.38 1992: 1.4.39 1994: 1.4.40 1995: 1.4.41 1996: 1.4.42 1997: 1.4.43 1998: 1.4.44 1999: 1.4.45 2000: 1.4.46 2004:

Chronological List of National and Regional Spiritual Assemblies

Explanatory information regarding the chronological list

This list shows all known formations and divisions of National or Regional Spiritual Assemblies up until Ridván, 2004.

National Spiritual Assemblies generally cover only one country (or dependent territory). Regional Spiritual Assemblies cover two or more countries. Because of the difficulty of detailing jurisdictional changes and boundary shifts, Regional Assemblies are shown only with their given name and, if known, the country in which their respective seats are or were located. Complete lists of countries under the jurisdiction of each Regional Assembly are not shown (to reduce the complexity of the list as much as possible), but can be inferred in most cases by tracking how a Regional Assembly is later split up into National Assemblies. Countries whose names have changed are listed using a slash (/) between the old and new names. Assemblies that have been dissolved because of political conditions within a country are noted with “until 19xx”, where “19xx” indicates the year of dissolution, if known.

Examples

1934: Persia/Iran – until 1983

This indicates that the NSA of Persia was formed in 1934, the name of the country was later changed to Iran, and that the NSA was dissolved in 1983.

1956: North West Africa (Tunisia)

This indicates that the RSA of North West Africa was formed in 1956, with its seat in the country of Tunisia. To determine the other countries under this RSA’s jurisdiction, it is necessary to see the manner in which it has been split up in succeeding years.

1964: Korea – separated from North East Asia

This indicates that prior to 1964, Korea was under the jurisdiction of the RSA of North East Asia

1983: Windward Islands divided into 3 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Dominica
• St. Lucia
• St. Vincent and Grenada (St. Vincent)

This indicates that the RSA of Windward Islands was divided into three new Assemblies in 1983. Two of these (Dominica, St. Lucia) are NSAs while the third (St. Vincent and Grenada) is an RSA covering two countries, with its seat in St. Vincent.

Sources

Information for this list has been researched and compiled from the following sources:

• God Passes By, Shoghi Effendi
• Messages to the Bahá’í World 1950-57, Shoghi Effendi
• Ministry of the Custodians, An Account of the Stewardship of the Hands of the Cause 1957-63, Universal House of Justice
• Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-86, Universal House of Justice
• The Bahá’í World, Volumes XIII-XX (covering the years 1954-92), Bahá’í World Centre
• Ridván Letters (1964-2004), Universal House of Justice
• The Bahá’ís (magazine), Bahá’í International Community

Notes on completeness/accuracy of information

Some information regarding sensitive countries, especially in the Middle East, South East Asia, and parts of Africa, is incomplete or may be incorrect. The House of Justice has written, in a letter to an individual believer dated 4 May 2003, with regard to a request for information about National Assembly formation in sensitive countries that “it would be best...not to pursue this undertaking any further.…” Therefore, information in the lists below is taken only from the sources shown above, all of which have been approved and published by the Bahá’í World Centre. More detailed information regarding sensitive countries should not be included in these lists until such time as the House of Justice indicates it to be safe and appropriate. Corrections or additions regarding non-sensitive countries are welcome at any time.

Formation of National and Regional Spiritual Assemblies

1923:

• England
• Germany and Austria (Germany) – until 1937
• India and Burma/India, Pakistan and Burma (India)

1924:

• Egypt and Sudan (Egypt)

1925:

• United States and Canada (United States)
• Caucasus (Azerbaijan) – until 1938
• Turkistan (Turkmenistan) – until 1938

1930:

England expanded to cover:

• British Isles (England)

1931:

• Iraq – until 1972

1934:

• Australia and New Zealand (Australia)
• Persia/Iran – until 1983

1947:

• Germany and Austria (Germany) – re-established

1948:

United States and Canada divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Canada
• United States

1951:

• Central America, Mexico, and the Antilles (Panama)
• South America (Argentina?)

1953:

• Italy and Switzerland (Italy)

1956:

• Central and East Africa (Uganda)
• North West Africa (Tunisia)
• South and West Africa (South Africa)

Egypt and Sudan expanded to cover:

• North East Africa (Egypt) – until 1960

1957:

• Alaska
• Arabian Peninsula
• The Benelux Countries (Belgium)
• The Iberian Peninsula (Spain)
• North East Asia (Japan)
• Pakistan – separated from India
• Scandinavia and Finland (Sweden)
• South East Asia (Vietnam)

Australia and New Zealand divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Australia
• New Zealand

Central America, Mexico, and the Antilles divided into 2 new RSAs:

• The Greater Antilles (Haiti)
• Mexico and Central America (Panama)

South America divided into 2 new RSAs:

• Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela (Peru)
• Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia (Argentina)

1958:

• France – separated from The Benelux Countries

1959:

• South Pacific Islands (Fiji)
• Turkey

Germany and Austria divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Austria
• Germany

India and Burma divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Burma
• India

1961:

• North East Africa (Ethiopia) – moved from Egypt

Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela divided into 5 new NSAs:

• Brazil
• Colombia
• Ecuador
• Peru
• Venezuela

Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia divided into 5 new NSAs:

• Argentina
• Bolivia
• Chile
• Paraguay
• Uruguay

The Greater Antilles divided into 4 new NSAs:

• Cuba
• Dominican Republic
• Haiti
• Jamaica

Mexico and Central America divided into 7 new NSAs:

• Costa Rica
• El Salvador
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Mexico
• Nicaragua
• Panama

1962:

• Ceylon/Sri Lanka

The Benelux Countries divided into 3 new NSAs:

• Belgium
• Luxembourg
• Netherlands

Italy and Switzerland divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Italy
• Switzerland

Scandinavia and Finland divided into 4 new NSAs:

• Denmark
• Finland
• Norway
• Sweden

1964:

• Hawaiian Islands
• Korea – separated from North East Asia

Central and East Africa divided into 3 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Kenya
• Tanganyika and Zanzibar/Tanzania
• Uganda and Central Africa (Uganda)

North West Africa divided into 3 new NSAs:

• North West Africa (Tunisia or Morocco?)
• West Africa (Liberia)
• West Central Africa (Cameroon Republic)

South and West Africa divided into 3 new RSAs:

• Indian Ocean (Mauritius)
• South and West Africa (South Africa)
• South Central Africa (Rhodesia)

South East Asia divided into 5 new NSAs:

• Indonesia – until 1970s?
• Malaysia
• Philippines
• Thailand
• Vietnam – until 1978

South Pacific Islands divided into 2 new RSAs:

• South Pacific Ocean (Fiji)
• South West Pacific Ocean (Solomon Islands)

1966:

• Brunei – until 1970s?

1967:

• Belize
• Eastern and Southern Arabia – separated from Arabian Peninsula
• Gilbert and Ellice Islands/Kiribati and Tuvalu – separated from South Pacific Ocean
• Laos – separated from Thailand
• Leeward, Windward, and Virgin Islands
• Sikkim
• Taiwan – separated from North East Asia

North West Africa divided into 2 new RSAs:

• North Africa (Algeria) – until 1969
• North West Africa (Morocco)

South and West Africa divided into 2 new RSAs:

• South and West Africa (South Africa)
• Swaziland, Mozambique and Basutoland (Swaziland)

South Central Africa divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• South Central Africa (Rhodesia)
• Zambia

West Central Africa divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Cameroon Republic
• West Central Africa (Nigeria)

1969:

• Papua New Guinea
• Rwanda and Burundi (Burundi) – separated from Uganda and Central Africa

1970:

• Guianas (Guyana)
• Near East (Lebanon)

Uganda and Central Africa divided into 3 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Central Africa (Central African Republic)
• Congo/Zaïre – until 1981
• Uganda – until 1979

South Pacific Ocean divided into 3 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Fiji
• Samoa
• Tonga and the Cook Islands (Tonga)

South Central Africa divided into 3 new NSAs:

• Botswana
• Malawi
• Rhodesia/Zimbabwe

West Africa divided into 3 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Ghana
• Upper West Africa (Gambia)
• West Africa (Liberia)

West Central Africa divided into 2 new RSAs:

• Dahomey, Togo and Niger (Dahomey)
• West Central Africa (Nigeria)

1971:

• Trinidad and Tobago

Central Africa divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Central African Republic
• Chad

North East Africa divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Ethiopia
• Sudan

Swaziland, Mozambique and Basutoland divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Lesotho
• Swaziland and Mozambique (Swaziland)

West Africa divided into 2 new RSAs:

• Ivory Coast, Mali and Upper Volta (Ivory Coast)
• West Africa (Liberia)

South West Pacific Ocean divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Solomon Islands
• South West Pacific Ocean (New Caledonia)

1972:

• Afghanistan – until 1978
• East Pakistan/Bangladesh
• Kuwait
• Nepal – until 1976
• North West Pacific Ocean (The Caroline Islands)
• Puerto Rico
• Singapore – separated from Malaysia

British Isles divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Ireland
• United Kingdom

Indian Ocean divided into 4 new NSAs:

• Malagasy Republic/Madagascar
• Mauritius
• Réunion
• Seychelles

Leeward, Windward, and Virgin Islands divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Barbados and Windward Islands (Barbados)
• Virgin Islands

Rwanda and Burundi divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Burundi – until 1974
• Rwanda – until 1996

1973:

West Central Africa divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Equatorial Guinea – until 1976
• Nigeria

1974:

• Tunisia – re-established

North East Asia divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Hong Kong
• Japan

Eastern and Southern Arabia divided into 2 new RSAs:

• Eastern Arabia (Bahrain)
• Southeast Arabia (United Arab Emirates?)

1975:

Dahomey, Togo and Niger divided into 3 new NSAs:

• Dahomey/Benin
• Niger – until 1979
• Togo

North West Africa and Upper West Africa reorganized into 3 new NSAs:

• Gambia
• Morocco
• Upper West Africa (Senegal)

West Africa divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Liberia and Guinea (Liberia) – until 1991
• Sierra Leone

1977:

• French Antilles (Guadeloupe)
• Greece
• The Marshall Islands – separated from North West Pacific Ocean

Near East divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Jordan
• Lebanon

Guianas divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Guyana
• Surinam and French Guiana

Ivory Coast, Mali and Upper Volta divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Ivory Coast and Mali
• Upper Volta/Burkina Faso

South West Pacific Ocean divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• New Caledonia and Loyalty Islands
• New Hebrides/Vanuatu

1978:

• The Bahamas
• Burundi – re-established – until 1995
• Cyprus

Eastern Arabia divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Bahrain
• Qatar

North West Pacific Ocean divided into 2 new NSAs:

• The Caroline Islands
• The Mariana Islands

Southeast Arabia divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Oman
• United Arab Emirates

Upper West Africa divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Mauritania
• Upper West Africa (Senegal)

1980:

• Transkei – separated from South and West Africa

1981:

• Bermuda
• Leeward Islands – separated from Virgin Islands
• Uganda – re-established

Barbados and Windward Islands divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Barbados
• Windward Islands (St. Vincent)

Kiribati and Tuvalu divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Kiribati
• Tuvalu

South and West Africa divided into 3 new NSAs: (Angola transferred to RSA of Swaziland, Mozambique and Angola)

• Bophuthatswana
• Namibia
• South Africa

1982:

• Nepal – re-established

1983:

Windward Islands divided into 3 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Dominica
• St. Lucia
• St. Vincent and Grenada (St. Vincent)

1984:

• Andaman and Nicobar Islands
• Canary Islands
• Cape Verde Islands
• Equatorial Guinea – re-established
• Gabon
• Yemen – separated from Arabian Peninsula?

French Antilles divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Guadeloupe
• Martinique

Surinam and French Guiana divided into 2 new NSAs:

• French Guiana
• Suriname

St. Vincent and Grenada divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Grenada
• St. Vincent and the Grenadines

1985:

• Ciskei – separated from South Africa

Swaziland, Mozambique and Angola divided into 2 new NSAs: (status of Angola unknown)

• Mozambique
• Swaziland

Tonga and the Cook Islands divided into 2 new NSAs:

• The Cook Islands
• Tonga

The Caroline Islands divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Eastern Caroline Islands
• Western Caroline Islands

Ivory Coast and Mali divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Ivory Coast
• Mali

1988:

• Zaïre/Congo – re-established

1989:

• Macau – separated from Hong Kong

Upper West Africa divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Guinea-Bissau
• Senegal

1991:

• Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic and Slovakia
• Romania
• Soviet Union

Leeward Islands divided into 2 new RSAs:

• East Leeward Islands
• West Leeward Islands

(Guinea transferred to RSA of Ivory Coast and Guinea)

1992:

• Albania
• Angola
• Bulgaria
• Congo – re-established
• Greenland
• Hungary
• Niger – re-established
• Poland

Soviet Union divided into 5 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Azerbaijan
• Baltic States (Estonia)
• Central Asia (Turkmenistan)
• Russia, Georgia and Armenia (Russia)
• Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova (Ukraine)

(Sikkim absorbed into NSA of India)

1994:

• Cambodia
• Mongolia
• Slovenia and Croatia (Slovenia)

Central Asia divided into 5 new NSAs:

• Kazakhstan
• Kyrgyzstan
• Tajikistan
• Turkmenistan
• Uzbekistan

1995:

• Eritrea – separated from Ethiopia
• Sicily – separated from Italy

Russia, Georgia and Armenia divided into 3 new NSAs:

• Armenia
• Georgia
• Russia

Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova divided into 2 new NSAs/RSAs:

• Belarus
• Ukraine and Moldova (Ukraine)

(Bophuthatswana, Ciskei and Transkei absorbed into NSA of South Africa)

1996:

• São Tomé and Príncipe

Ukraine and Moldova divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Moldova
• Ukraine

1997:

• Rwanda – re-established

1998:

• Liberia – re-established

Czech Republic and Slovakia divided into 2 new NSAs:

• Czech Republic
• Slovakia

Malaysia divided into 3 new NSAs:

• Malaysia
• Sabah
• Sarawak

1999:

Baltic States divided into 3 new NSAs:

• Estonia
• Latvia
• Lithuania

2000:

• Indonesia – re-established

2004:

• Iraq – re-established