National Association Polity

National association polity is the governance form recorded in this atlas for religious bodies made up of autonomous local bodies that come together under a national umbrella association, which coordinates them without governing each one directly. Wikipedia notes in its article on ecclesiastical polity that there are local, congregational forms of organization as well as denominational ones, and this form sits between the two. In this atlas the entity stands for the governance form itself, so denominations, religious orders and societies governed this way can be grouped and compared under it, while each member entry keeps its own governance facts and sources.