AF&AM, F&AM, AFM, and FAAM all describe regular, recognized Freemasonry. Here is what each one means, which jurisdictions use it, and why the initials differ.
A grand lodge’s initials describe its descent
A grand lodge’s initials describe its lineage, not its legitimacy. The letters tell you which side of an eighteenth-century English rivalry a jurisdiction descends from, and almost nothing about how its members meet, work, or relate to one another today.
In the United States, 24 state grand lodges use AF&AM, 25 use F&AM, South Carolina alone uses AFM, and the District of Columbia uses FAAM. A Mason raised in an F&AM lodge in Ohio and a Mason raised in an AF&AM lodge in Texas are Brothers in every sense that matters.
At a glance
- What the letters are
- The official name a grand lodge uses, inherited from its lineage
- AF&AM
- Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, used by 24 states
- F&AM
- Free and Accepted Masons, used by 25 states and all Prince Hall grand lodges
- AFM
- Ancient Free Masons, South Carolina alone
- FAAM
- Free and Accepted Masons, the District of Columbia’s styling
- Does it matter
- Rarely in practice; mainly for engraved or embroidered regalia
A London quarrel that outlasted itself
The split traces to London. From 1751 to 1813, England had two rival grand lodges. The older of the two, founded in 1717, came to be called the “Moderns.” A second body, organized in 1751 and claiming to preserve older usages, called itself the “Antients,” later spelled “Ancients.” The two competed for more than sixty years before reconciling in 1813 to form the United Grand Lodge of England.
During those decades, both groups, along with the Grand Lodges of Ireland and Scotland, chartered lodges across colonial North America. When American grand lodges formed after the Revolution, each carried forward the styling of whichever tradition had warranted its founding lodges. A jurisdiction descended from the Antients tended to adopt “Ancient Free and Accepted Masons.” One descended from the Moderns tended to use “Free and Accepted Masons.” The labels outlasted the quarrel that produced them, which is why the map of AF&AM and F&AM states looks scattered rather than regional.
The premier Grand Lodge of England is founded in London, later nicknamed the Moderns by its rival.
A second grand lodge organizes, claiming to keep older usages. It styles its lodges Ancient.
The two reconcile as the United Grand Lodge of England. The labels remain in their daughter lodges.
Every state, by the letters it uses
Hover or tap a tile for the full name and designation. Use the keys to isolate one group. The two large traditions carry the house colors; the two lone jurisdictions, South Carolina and the District of Columbia, stand in the accent colors because they are the rare ones.
Tile positions are an approximate cartogram for legibility, not exact geography. Designation colors are verified against each grand lodge’s own name.
Ancient Free Masons (AFM) belongs to a single jurisdiction. The Grand Lodge of Ancient Free Masons of South Carolina drops the word “Accepted” entirely, a styling unique among the states. FAAM spells the same four words as F&AM; the District of Columbia simply renders them F.A.A.M. on its own seal.
A few grand lodges carry longer legal names that can mislead a quick reading. Nebraska’s full title is the Most Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons of Nebraska, and New Jersey and Pennsylvania use similar “Most Ancient and Honorable” phrasing. In each, the word “Ancient” modifies “Fraternity,” not the working designation. Nebraska styles itself A.F. & A.M. in practice, while New Jersey and Pennsylvania operate as F&AM.
Equal in standing, and styled F&AM
Prince Hall Affiliated grand lodges, the predominantly African American jurisdictions that descend from African Lodge No. 459 in Boston, are styled Free and Accepted Masons. A Prince Hall grand lodge is in almost every case named the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of [State], F. & A. M.
Prince Hall and mainstream grand lodges now recognize one another in most American jurisdictions, and a visiting Brother finds the same designation, the same degrees, and the same fraternity on both sides. Two states break the naming pattern:
North of the border, the same. South of it, a different vocabulary.
Canadian Freemasonry grew from the same English, Irish, and Scottish roots, so it carries the same convention. South of the United States, the distinction largely disappears, because those jurisdictions descend from Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Dutch traditions and from the Scottish Rite’s symbolic-lodge system.
United States & Canada
Most Canadian grand lodges are styled A.F. & A.M. Ontario formally adopted “Grand Lodge, A.F. & A.M., of Canada in the Province of Ontario” in 1887. A Mason crossing from Maine into Nova Scotia meets the same letters he already knows.
Latin America & the Caribbean
The question here is not Ancient or Modern, but which mother constitution a lodge works under, and whether it follows the Grand Lodge or the Grand Orient tradition. Much of the English-speaking Caribbean operates as District Grand Lodges under England, Scotland, or Ireland.
Rarely in the lodge. Always on the engraving.
For day-to-day Freemasonry, very little. The practical differences between AF&AM and F&AM jurisdictions come down to small variations in ritual wording and a few officer titles. Recognition, visitation, and the bonds of the fraternity are unaffected. A grand lodge’s letters do not make its Masonry more or less regular.
The distinction matters most in one ordinary setting: anything engraved, embroidered, or printed with a jurisdictional designation. A Past Master’s apron, a ring, a certificate, or a shirt should carry the designation the recipient’s own grand lodge actually uses.
Getting those letters right is a matter of accuracy, and for many Masons a matter of pride.
In short
- A grand lodge’s initials name its lineage, not its rank; AF&AM and F&AM Masons are equally regular.
- The split goes back to the Antients and Moderns, two rival English grand lodges from 1751 to 1813.
- In the United States, 24 states are AF&AM, 25 are F&AM, South Carolina is AFM, and the District of Columbia is FAAM.
- Canada uses the same A.F. & A.M. convention; Latin America and the non-English Caribbean name bodies by rite and obedience instead.
- The difference rarely matters in the lodge, but regalia and engraving should carry the wearer’s own designation.
Common questions about the letters
What does AF&AM stand for?
Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. It marks a grand lodge whose founding lodges descended from the Antients, one of the two rival English grand lodges before 1813. Twenty-four states use it.
What does F&AM stand for?
Free and Accepted Masons. It marks descent from the Moderns, the older of the two English grand lodges. Twenty-five states use it, as do the Prince Hall grand lodges.
Is there a real difference between AF&AM and F&AM?
Very little in practice. The two share the same degrees and recognize one another. The differences amount to small variations in ritual wording and a few officer titles. Neither is more regular than the other.
What is AFM, and why does only South Carolina use it?
AFM stands for Ancient Free Masons. The Grand Lodge of South Carolina drops the word “Accepted” from its name, a styling unique among the states.
Does Canada use the same designations?
Yes. Most Canadian grand lodges are styled A.F. & A.M., inherited from the same English, Irish, and Scottish roots. Latin America and the non-English Caribbean follow a different naming tradition entirely.
- United Grand Lodge of England, on the 1813 union of the Antients and Moderns.
- George Washington Masonic National Memorial, Grand Lodge of the Month series, for per-jurisdiction histories.
- Official grand lodge names taken from each body’s own publications, including the Grand Lodge of Nebraska (A.F. & A.M.) and the Grand Lodge of South Carolina (A.F.M.).
- The Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario, on the 1887 name adoption.
- Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge histories, including the Most Worshipful Union Grand Lodge of Florida, on the Florida (Union) and Mississippi (Stringer) naming.
Every designation on this page was checked against each grand lodge’s own published name. Spotted an error? Submit a correction, or read our editorial standards.