An ecclesiastical region () is a formally organised geographical group of dioceses, ecclesiastical provinces or parishes, without a proper Ordinary as such, in Catholic or Protestant Churches.
Catholic Church Ecclesiastical regions have some historical functions within the Catholic Church, and the establishment of appropriate regions was proposed and recommended by the Second Vatican Council in its Decree on the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church.Second Vatican Council, Decree on the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church, sections 39-41, published on 28 October 1965, accessed on 4 September 2026
Ecclesiastical regions currently group together parts of the extensive episcopates in five countries:
Italy The Catholic Church in Italy is divided into 16 ecclesiastical regions.Italian ecclesiastical regions (in Italian) on the official website of the Catholic Church in Italy The regions mostly correspond to the 20 civil administrative regions of Italy.
Abruzzo-Molise (joining those two administrative regions) Basilicata Calabria Campania Emilia-Romagna Lazio = Latium Liguria Lombardy (Lombardia) Marche(s) Piemonte (Piedmont), including Valle d'Aosta Puglia (Apulia) Sardinia (Sardegna) Sicily (Sicilia) Tuscany (Toscana) Triveneto (i.e. Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Trentino-Alto Adige) Umbria.
Brazil The regions, covering the federal state(s) in parentheses, comprise the following ecclesiastical province(s):
Regional Norte (North) 1 (Amazonas e Roraima) : Manaus (1952) Regional Norte 2 (Pará e Amapá) : Belém do Pará (1906) Regional Nordeste (NE) 1 (Ceará) : Fortaleza (1915) Regional Nordeste 2 (Pernambuco, Paraíba, Rio Grande do Norte e Alagoas) : Maceió (1920), Natal (1952), Olinda e Recife (1910), Paraíba (1914) Regional Nordeste 3 (Bahia e Sergipe) : Aracaju (1960), Feira de Santana (2002), San Salvador di Bahia (1676), Vitória da Conquista (2002) Regional Nordeste 4 (Piauí) : Teresina (1952) Regional Nordeste 5 (Maranhão) Provincia ecclesiastica di São Luís do Maranhão (1922) Regional Leste (East) 1 (Rio de Janeiro); Niterói (1960), Rio de Janeiro (1892) Regional Leste 2 (Minas Gerais e Espírito Santo) : Belo Horizonte (1924), Diamantina (1917), Juiz de Fora (1962), Mariana (1906), Montes Claros (2001), Pouso Alegre (1962), Uberaba (1962), Vitória (1958) Regional Sul (South) 1 (São Paulo) : Aparecida (1958), Botucatu (1958), Campinas (1958), Ribeirão Preto (1958), San Paolo (1908), Sorocaba (1992) Regional Sul 2 (Paraná) : Cascavel (1979), Curitiba (1926), Curitiba degli Ucraini (2014), Londrina (1970), Maringá (1979) Regional Sul 3 (Rio Grande do Sul) : Passo Fundo (2011), Pelotas (2011), Porto Alegre (1910), Santa Maria (2011) Regional Sul 4 (Santa Catarina) : Florianópolis (1927) Regional Centro-Oeste (Center-West) (Goiás, Distrito Federal e Tocantins) : Brasília (1960), Goiânia (1956), Palmas (1996) and the army bishopric Ordinariato militare in Brasile (1950) Regional Oeste (West) 1 (Mato Grosso do Sul) : Campo Grande (1979) Regional Oeste 2 (Mato Grosso) : Cuiabá (1910) Regional Noroeste (NW) (Rondônia, Acre e Amazonas) : Porto Velho (1982)
Canada Four regions, each comprising several Latin provinces - Ontario and West also the Eastern Catholic province/eparchies, West also a non-metropolitan Latin archdiocese : Ontario (Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario) : Kingston, Ottawa, Toronto, Ukrainian Eparchy of Toronto, Chaldean Eparchy of Mar Addai off Toronto, Ruthenian Eparchy of Saints Cyril and Metodius of Toronto West (Assembly of Western Catholic Bishops) : Edmonton, Grouard-McLennan, Keewatin-Le Pas, Regina, Vancouver, (Latin archdiocese of) Winnipeg, Ukrainian province of Winnipeg Atlantic (Atlantic Episcopal Assembly) : Halifax-Yarmouth, Moncton, Saint John's Québec ([francophone] Assemblée des évêques catholiques du Québec) : Gatineau, Quebec, Rimouski, Montréal, Sherbrooke, Maronite Eparchy of Saint Maron of Montréal, Melkite Eparchy of the Salvator of Montréal
Mexico Each region covers one or more ecclesiastical provinces : Sur (South) : Acapulco Pacífico-Sur : Antequera, Tuxtla Gutiérrez Norte (North) : Chihuahua Metropolitana (federal capital) : Archdiocese Ciudad Mexico (cfr. below) Metro-Circundante : Tlalnepantla, Ciudad Mexico (only suffragans in province, so excepting Ciudad Mexico itself, which constitutes its own region above) Vizcaya-Pacifico : Durango Occidente (West) : Guadalajara Noroeste (NW) : Hermosillo, Tijuana Noreste (NE) : Monterrey Golfo : Jalapa Bajío : León, San Luis Potosí Don Vasco : Morelia Oriente (East) : Puebla de los Ángeles Centro (Central) : Tulancingo Sureste (SE) : Yucatán
United States See:
The dioceses of the United States are grouped into fifteen regions which, strictly speaking, are not "ecclesiastical regions" established by the Holy See, but rather regions that the USCCB established for convenience. They are not canonically established bodies. Fourteen of the regions (numbered I through XIV) are geographically based, for the Latin Catholic dioceses, the Eastern Catholic eparchies (dioceses) constitute the overlapping 'Region' XV.
Bishops' Region I Ecclesiastical province of Boston, comprising the states of Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Boston Diocese of Burlington Diocese of Fall River Diocese of Manchester Diocese of Portland Diocese of Springfield in Massachusetts Diocese of Worcester
Ecclesiastical province of Hartford, comprising the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island, as well as Fishers Island in the state of New York. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Hartford Diocese of Bridgeport Diocese of Norwich Diocese of Providence
Bishops' Region II Ecclesiastical province of New York, comprising the state of New York except for Fishers Island. Metropolitan Archdiocese of New York Diocese of Albany Diocese of Brooklyn Diocese of Buffalo Diocese of Ogdensburg Diocese of Rochester Diocese of Rockville Centre Diocese of Syracuse
Bishops' Region III Ecclesiastical province of Newark, comprising the state of New Jersey. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Newark Diocese of Camden Diocese of Metuchen Diocese of Paterson Diocese of Trenton
Ecclesiastical province of Philadelphia, comprising the state of Pennsylvania. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Philadelphia Diocese of Allentown Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown Diocese of Erie Diocese of Greensburg Diocese of Harrisburg Diocese of Pittsburgh Diocese of Scranton
Bishops' Region IV Ecclesiastical province of Baltimore, comprising most of the state of Maryland as well as the states of Delaware, Virginia and West Virginia. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore Diocese of Arlington Diocese of Richmond Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston Diocese of Wilmington
Ecclesiastical province of Washington, comprising the District of Columbia, 5 counties in southern Maryland, and the United States Virgin Islands. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Washington Diocese of Saint Thomas, with see in Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands (the bishops of the diocese are members of the USCCB and have observer status in the Antilles Episcopal Conference)
Bishops' Region V Ecclesiastical province of Louisville, comprising the states of Kentucky and Tennessee. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Louisville Diocese of Covington Diocese of Knoxville Diocese of Lexington Diocese of Memphis Diocese of Nashville Diocese of Owensboro
Ecclesiastical province of Mobile, comprising the states of Alabama and Mississippi. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mobile Diocese of Biloxi Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama Diocese of Jackson
Ecclesiastical province of New Orleans, comprising the state of Louisiana. Metropolitan Archdiocese of New Orleans Diocese of Alexandria in Louisiana Diocese of Baton Rouge Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana Diocese of Lake Charles Diocese of Shreveport
Bishops' Region VI Ecclesiastical province of Cincinnati, comprising the state of Ohio. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cincinnati Diocese of Cleveland Diocese of Columbus Diocese of Steubenville Diocese of Toledo Diocese of Youngstown
Ecclesiastical province of Detroit, comprising the state of Michigan. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Detroit Diocese of Gaylord Diocese of Grand Rapids Diocese of Kalamazoo Diocese of Lansing Diocese of Marquette Diocese of Saginaw
Bishops' Region VII Ecclesiastical province of Chicago, comprising the state of Illinois. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Chicago Diocese of Belleville Diocese of Joliet in Illinois Diocese of Peoria Diocese of Rockford Diocese of Springfield in Illinois
Ecclesiastical province of Indianapolis, comprising the state of Indiana. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Indianapolis Diocese of Evansville Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese of Gary Diocese of Lafayette in Indiana
Ecclesiastical province of Milwaukee, comprising the state of Wisconsin. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Milwaukee Diocese of Green Bay Diocese of La Crosse Diocese of Madison Diocese of Superior
Bishops' Region VIII Ecclesiastical province of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, comprising the states of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Diocese of Bismarck Diocese of Crookston Diocese of Duluth Diocese of Fargo Diocese of New Ulm Diocese of Rapid City Diocese of Saint Cloud Diocese of Sioux Falls Diocese of Winona-Rochester
Bishops' Region IX Ecclesiastical province of Dubuque, comprising the state of Iowa. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Dubuque Diocese of Davenport Diocese of Des Moines Diocese of Sioux City
Ecclesiastical province of Kansas City, comprising the state of Kansas. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas Diocese of Dodge City Diocese of Salina Diocese of Wichita
Ecclesiastical province of Omaha, comprising the state of Nebraska. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Omaha Diocese of Grand Island Diocese of Lincoln
Ecclesiastical province of Saint Louis, comprising the state of Missouri. Metropolitan Archdiocese of St. Louis Diocese of Jefferson City Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau
Bishops' Region X Ecclesiastical province of Galveston-Houston, comprising the east and southeast parts of the state of Texas. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston Diocese of Austin Diocese of Beaumont Diocese of Brownsville Diocese of Corpus Christi Diocese of Tyler Diocese of Victoria in Texas
Ecclesiastical province of San Antonio, comprising the west and north of the state of Texas. Metropolitan Archdiocese of San Antonio Diocese of Amarillo Diocese of Dallas Diocese of El Paso Diocese of Fort Worth Diocese of Laredo Diocese of Lubbock Diocese of San Angelo
Ecclesiastical province of Oklahoma City, comprising the states of Arkansas and Oklahoma. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Oklahoma City Diocese of Little Rock Diocese of Tulsa
Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, comprising former Anglicans throughout the United States (and Canada). Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter
Bishops' Region XI Ecclesiastical province of Los Angeles, comprising the southern part of the state of California. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Los Angeles Diocese of Fresno Diocese of Monterey in California Diocese of Orange (county, L.A.) Diocese of San Bernardino Diocese of San Diego
Ecclesiastical province of San Francisco, comprising the northern part of the state of California and the state of Hawaii (in Oceania). Metropolitan Archdiocese of San Francisco Diocese of Oakland Diocese of Sacramento Diocese of San Jose in California Diocese of Santa Rosa in California Diocese of Stockton also Diocese of Honolulu, in Polynesia, i.e. in Oceania
Bishops' Region XII Ecclesiastical province of Anchorage-Juneau, comprising the state of Alaska. Metropolitan Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau Diocese of Fairbanks