This article is a list of primates

Primate (religion)

Primate is a title or rank bestowed on some bishops in certain Christian churches. Depending on the particular tradition, it can denote either jurisdictional authority or ceremonial precedence ....

 of the Orthodox Church in America

Orthodox Church in America

The Orthodox Church in America is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in North America. Its primate is Metropolitan Jonah , who was elected on November 12, 2008, and was formally installed on December 28, 2008...

 (OCA).

Prior to the early 1920s, all Orthodox

Eastern Orthodox Church

The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...

 on the North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

n continent (regardless of ethnicity

Ethnic group

An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...

) were under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church

Russian Orthodox Church

The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...

. This North American diocese (known by a number of names throughout its history) was ruled by a bishop

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...

 or archbishop

Archbishop

An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...

 assigned by the Russian Church.

After the Bolshevik Revolution

October Revolution

The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...

 of 1917, communication between the Russian Orthodox Church and the churches of North America was almost completely cut off. In 1920, Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow

Tikhon of Moscow

Saint Tikhon of Moscow , born Vasily Ivanovich Bellavin , was the 11th Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia of the Russian Orthodox Church during the early years of the Soviet Union, 1917 through 1925.-Early life:...

 directed all Russian Orthodox churches outside of Russia to govern themselves autonomously until regular communication and travel could be resumed. As a result, many Orthodox communities with a non-Russian background turned to Churches in their respective homelands for pastoral care and governance.

After declaring the autonomy of the North American Diocese (known as the "Metropolia") in February 1924, Archbishop Platon (Rozhdestvensky) became the first Metropolitan

Metropolitan bishop

In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...

 of All America and Canada. Since that time, the primate of the OCA has been known as Metropolitan of All America and Canada, in addition to his role as the archbishop of an OCA diocese. When the OCA (then known as the Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church in North America) was granted autocephaly

Autocephaly

Autocephaly , in hierarchical Christian churches and especially Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, is the status of a hierarchical church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop...

 by the Russian Church in 1970 (an act not recognized by all Orthodox jurisdictions), it was renamed the Orthodox Church in America, and the ruling Metropolitan was granted the additional title of His Beatitude.

Name	Place of birth	Birth name	Jurisdiction	Dates of rule	Notes
Joasaph (Bolotov)	Strazhkov, Kashinsky District	Ivan Ilyich Bolotov	Bishop of Kodiak, Auxiliary of the Irkutsk Diocese	1799	Joasaph was elected bishop in 1796, but news did not reach him until 1798. He returned to Irkutsk Irkutsk Irkutsk is a city and the administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, one of the largest cities in Siberia. Population: .-History:In 1652, Ivan Pokhabov built a zimovye near the site of Irkutsk for gold trading and for the collection of fur taxes from the Buryats. In 1661, Yakov Pokhabov...  and was consecrated in 1799, but died during his return voyage to Alaska.
Innocent (Veniaminov) Innocent of Alaska Saint Innocent of Alaska , also known as Saint Innocent of Moscow was a Russian Orthodox priest, bishop, archbishop and Metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia. He is known for his missionary work, scholarship and leadership in Alaska and the Russian Far East during the 19th century...	Anginskoye, Verkholensk District	Ivan (John) Evseyevich Popov-Veniaminov	Bishop of Kamchatka, the Kurile and Aleutian Islands	1840–50
			Archbishop of Kamchatka, the Kurile and Aleutian Islands	1850–68
Peter (Ekaterinovsky)	Saratov Oblast Saratov Oblast Saratov Oblast is a federal subject of Russia , located in the Volga Federal District. Its administrative center is the city of Saratov. Population: -Demographics:Population:...	Theodore (Fyodor) Ekaterinovsky	Bishop of Novoarkhangelsk Sitka City and Borough, Alaska The City and Borough of Sitka, originally called New Archangel under Russian Rule, is a unified city-borough located on Baranof Island and the southern half of Chichagof Island in the Alexander Archipelago of the Pacific Ocean , in the U.S... , Auxiliary of the Kamchatka Kamchatka Peninsula The Kamchatka Peninsula is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of . It lies between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Sea of Okhotsk to the west...  Diocese	1859–66
Paul (Popov)	Yeniseysk Province	Paul Popov	Bishop of Novoarkhangelsk, Auxiliary of the Kamchatka Diocese	1866–70	With the Alaska purchase Alaska purchase The Alaska Purchase was the acquisition of the Alaska territory by the United States from Russia in 1867 by a treaty ratified by the Senate. The purchase, made at the initiative of United States Secretary of State William H. Seward, gained of new United States territory...  in 1867, Alaska became a territory of the United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... .
John (Mitropolsky)	Kaluga Kaluga Kaluga is a city and the administrative center of Kaluga Oblast, Russia, located on the Oka River southwest of Moscow. Population: It is served by Grabtsevo Airport.-History:... , Russia	Stephen Mitropolsky	Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska	1870–77
Nestor (Zakkis)	Arkangelsk, Russia	Baron Nikolai Pavlovich Zakkis	Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska	1878–82	Following the death of Bishop Nestor in 1882, the Diocese of the Aleutians and Alaska fell under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan of St. Petersburg until 1887.
Vladimir (Sokolovsky-Avtonomov)	Senkovka, Poltava Oblast Poltava Oblast Poltava Oblast is an oblast of central Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Poltava.Other important cities within the oblast include: Komsomolsk, Kremenchuk, Lubny and Myrhorod.-Geography:...	Vasily Grigorievich Sokolovsky-Avtonomov	Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska	1887–91
Nicholas (Adoratsky)			Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska	1891	Bishop Nicholas was transferred to another see Episcopal See An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...  before traveling to North America to assume his duties as ruling bishop.
Nicholas (Ziorov)	Kherson Oblast Kherson Oblast Kherson Oblast is an oblast in southern Ukraine, just north of Crimea. Its administrative center is Kherson. The area of the region is 29000 km², its population is 1.12 million.Important cities in the oblast include:...	Michael Zacharovich Ziorov	Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska	1891–98	In 1898, Bishop Nicholas was transferred to Russia, to serve as Archbishop of the Diocese of Tver and Kashin.
Tikhon (Bellavin) Tikhon of Moscow Saint Tikhon of Moscow , born Vasily Ivanovich Bellavin , was the 11th Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia of the Russian Orthodox Church during the early years of the Soviet Union, 1917 through 1925.-Early life:...	Toropetz District	Vasily Ivanovich Belavin	Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska	1898–1900
			Bishop of the Aleutians and North America	1900–05	Bishop Tikhon introduced many changes to the diocesan structure, including renaming it to the Diocese of the Aleutians and North America.
			Archbishop of the Aleutians and North America	1905–07	Bishop Tikhon was elevated to archbishop when the diocese was made an archdiocese in 1905. He returned to Russia in 1907.
Platon (Rozhdestvensky)	Kursk Eparchy Kursk Kursk is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym Rivers. The area around Kursk was site of a turning point in the Russian-German struggle during World War II and the site of the largest tank battle in history...	Porphyry Theodorovich Rozhdestvensky	Archbishop of the Aleutians and North America	1907–14
			Metropolitan of All America and Canada	1922–34
Evdokim (Meschersky)	Vladimir Diocese Vladimir Oblast Vladimir Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Vladimir, which is located east of Moscow...	Basil Mikhailovich Meschersky	Archbishop of the Aleutians and North America	1914–18	Archbishop Evodkim returned to Russia and was appointed Archbishop of Nizhegorod Nizhny Novgorod Oblast Nizhny Novgorod Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Nizhny Novgorod. Population: The oblast is crossed by the Volga River. Apart from Nizhny Novgorod's metropolitan area, the biggest city is Arzamas...  in 1919.
Alexander (Nemolovsky)	Volhynia Eparchy Volhynia Volhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...	Alexander Alexandrovich Nemolovsky	Archbishop of the Aleutians and North America	1919–22	Archbishop Alexander left the United States in 1922, and was replaced by Metropolitan Platon.
Theophilus (Pashkovsky)	Kiev Oblast Kiev Oblast Kyiv Oblast, sometimes written as Kiev Oblast is an oblast in central Ukraine.The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Kyiv , also being the capital of Ukraine...	Theodore Nicholaevich Pashkovsky	Archbishop of San Francisco, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	1934–50	Theophilus was elected as metropolitan after Metropolitan Platon's death in 1934.
Leonty (Turkevich) Leonty (Turkevich) Metropolitan Leontius was the Metropolitan of the North American Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church from 1950 until his death in 1965. He was succeeded by Metropolitan Ireney...	Kremenets Kremenets Kremenets is a city in the Ternopil Oblast of western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Kremenets Raion , and rests 18 km north-east of the great Pochayiv Monastery...	Leonid Ieronimovich Turkevich	Archbishop of New York, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	1950–65
Ireney (Bekish) Ireney (Bekish) Metropolitan Ireney or Irenaeus was the primate of the Orthodox Church in America from 1965 until his retirement in 1977. He was succeeded by Metropolitan Theodosius .Metr...	Mezhirech, Lublin Province Lublin Lublin is the ninth largest city in Poland. It is the capital of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 350,392 . Lublin is also the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river...	John Bekish	Archbishop of New York, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	1965–77	In 1970, the Russian Metropolia (also known as the Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church in North America) was granted autocephaly Autocephaly Autocephaly , in hierarchical Christian churches and especially Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, is the status of a hierarchical church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop... , and was renamed as the Orthodox Church in America.
Sylvester (Haruns)	Dvinsk Daugavpils Daugavpils is a city in southeastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. Daugavpils literally means "Daugava Castle". With a population of over 100,000, it is the second largest city in the country after the capital Riga, which is located some... , Latvia Latvia Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...	Ivan Antonovich Haruns	Archbishop of Montreal and Canada, Temporary Administrator of the Orthodox Church in America	1974–77	Archbishop Sylvester was appointed as Temporary Administrator in 1974, and handled the day-to-day business of the Church for Metropolitan Ireney, whose health was failing.
Theodosius (Lazor) Theodosius (Lazor) Metropolitan Theodosius was the primate of the Orthodox Church in America from 1977 until his retirement in 2002. On April 2, 2002, Metropolitan Theodosius submitted a petition to the Holy Synod of the OCA, requesting his retirement...	Canonsburg, PA Canonsburg, Pennsylvania Canonsburg is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, southwest of Pittsburgh. Canonsburg was laid out by Colonel John Canon in 1789 and incorporated in 1802....	Frank Lazor	Archbishop of New York, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	1977–80
			Archbishop of Washington, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	1981–2002
Herman (Swaiko) Herman (Swaiko) Metropolitan Herman is the former primate of the Orthodox Church in America . As the head of the OCA, he was the Archbishop of Washington and New York, and Metropolitan of All America and Canada...	Briarford, PA	Joseph Swaiko	Archbishop of Washington, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	2002–05
			Archbishop of Washington and New York, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	2005–2008
Jonah (Paffhausen) Jonah (Paffhausen) Jonah , Archbishop of Washington, Metropolitan of All America and Canada, is the primate of the Orthodox Church in America . He was elected on November 12, 2008, and installed to his see on December 28, 2008, in Washington, D.C...	Chicago, IL	James Paffhausen	Archbishop of Washington and New York, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	2008-2009	Metropolitan Jonah is the first Metropolitan of the OCA who was not born an Orthodox Christian.
			Archbishop of Washington, Metropolitan of All America and Canada	2009-present