Civil society/Catalogs/Organization Types

This page contains an alphabetical catalog listing of a variety of terms for civil society organizations.

Association

1) A group of three or more persons organized for the achievement of some purpose.

2) Also, a shorter term for voluntary association (see below)

Civil society organization

 An increasingly common term used outside the U.S. for any organization operating outside the economic market, political state and the intimate sphere of the household.  

Club

Usually a small association with a narrow or clearly defined purpose and limited formal organization. (E.g., card club, model club, chess club). The term can also be applied to larger membership associations (e.g. 4H Clubs).

Commons

A group of independent individuals voluntarily sharing a common purpose (e.g. raising crops, grazing sheep, operating a public charity, creating and maintaining open source software, etc.), and pooled resources (land, grass, money, programming skills).

Cooperative
Corporation
Family
Family Foundation
Firm
Foundation
Group

Household

The organization of persons living together in a residence. A single family household includes only related family members of one family and any resident household employees and retainers, like live-in cooks, housekeepers, au pairs, etc. The U.S. census also tabulates households of unrelated individuals (often termed "roommates").

Interest group
Krewe
Membership association
Nonprofit corporation
Nonprofit organization
Not-for-profit organization
Political party
Professional association
Social movement
Tong
Voluntary association
Waqf