Hello, and happy new year, JASP readers and devotees! In celebration of Jane Austen’s 250th birthday year, as well as the 2025 Jane Austen Summer Program symposium, we are turning our attention to transatlantic topics in the year of Austen’s birth and the modern era. This article provides a brief overview of just a few of the societies and organizations across the globe dedicated to celebrating the legacy of dear Aunt Jane.
Europe
Established in 1940, the Jane Austen Society of the United Kingdom aims to foster the appreciation and study of Jane Austen’s life, writings, and family history. Originally founded by Dorothy Darnell to support the preservation of Chawton Cottage, the Jane Austen Society now boasts seven regional branches and in 2022 was registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organization by the UK Charity Commission.
The Jane Austen Society of Italy (JASIT) is an Italian Cultural Association dedicated to promoting the knowledge and study of Jane Austen’s life, family, and work in the name of cultural enrichment. This vibrant organization supports critical literary magazine Due pollici d’avorio (Two Inches of Ivory), yearly writing contests, book clubs, a thesis prize in Austenian topics in collaboration with the University of Bologna, and an Annual Gathering.
The Jane Austen Society of the Netherlands promotes the study of Austen’s life and works with a special emphasis on Regency music, dance, and costume. It hosts monthly Jane Austen Regency Dance workshops and regular Regency-themed events, including balls, picnics, and boat trips, etc.—of course, with a strict Regency dress code!
North America
The Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) was founded in 1979 and currently boasts over 5,000 members, making it the largest literary society devoted to the life and writings of Jane Austen. Most members live in the United States and Canada, and there are eighty-one distinct regional groups within the organization. Each fall, 700 to 800+ members gather for the Annual General Meeting (AGM), a three-day themed conference featuring academic lectures, workshops, exhibits, entertainment, a banquet, and a Regency ball.
Co-founded by Inger Brodey and James Thompson in 2012, the Jane Austen Summer Program (JASP) is a non-profit collaborative network of scholars, teachers, and fans who run several public humanities programs. Their award-winning four-day symposium focuses on one of Austen’s works each summer. JASP also runs several other public educational programs, including Jane Austen & Co., JASP+, and Jane Austen's Desk.
Founded in 2019, the Jane Austen Society of Mexico (JASMEX) is one of the newest Jane Austen associations. It is dedicated to making more content about Austen's work available to the Spanish-speaking world, sharing different cultural encounters with her books, and reporting on the latest news related to Austen’s life and Regency England. Connect with JASMEX on Instagram or Facebook.
South America
The Jane Austen Society of Brazil began as a small group of dedicated Austen-lovers in 2005 and became an official organization in 2009. Among other programming, the society offers short-term online academic courses in topics related to Austen’s life and works, YouTube livestreams, and the biannual publication of LiterAusten Journal.
Asia
The Jane Austen Society of Japan was established in 2006 and has a current membership of around one hundred. It supports the advancement of Austen studies in Japan by promoting the appreciation and study of Jane Austen and her contemporaries, and it publishes its self-titled academic journal annually.
The Jane Austen Society of Pakistan meets regularly for high tea in Lahore, the country’s second-largest city, to discuss Austen’s life and work. Founded by Laaleen Sukhera, the society began as a Facebook group and quickly grew into a lively social community of fans and scholars who enjoy drawing connections between Regency England and modern-day Pakistani society. Watch the BBC’s feature on the Jane Austen Society of Pakistan below.
Oceania
In 2024, the Jane Austen Society of Aotearoa New Zealand (JASNZ) celebrated an exciting birthday, marking ten years since the society’s founding. JASNZ celebrates “[t]he pleasures of friendship, of unreserved conversation, of similarity of taste and opinions” with regular in-person meetings, online blog posts, and JASNZ-founder Frances Duncan’s The Amateur Austenite podcast and Austen-inspired life coaching sessions.
The Jane Austen Society of Australia (JASA) was founded in 1989 and is currently the continent’s largest literary society. Based in Sydney, the society boasts members in all states of the nation as well as overseas and is the proud curator of an extensive library of Austen-adjacent materials. Publications include Sensibilities, Practicalities, and the JASA Chronicle. If you haven’t already, catch JASA Vice President Harriet Jordan’s Janeite Spotlight on the JASP blog.
Founded by Caroline Jane Knight, Austen’s fifth great niece, the Jane Austen Literacy Foundation is a non-profit organization promoting literacy in countries across the globe. Inspired by Austen’s legacy, the foundation supports literacy projects among Indian and Indigenous Australian communities and creates educational materials for local classrooms. Donate here to make a difference, and be sure to catch Caroline’s Janeite Spotlight article later in 2025!
Are you affiliated with any of these (or other) Jane Austen organizations? If so, give them a shout-out in the comments below!
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