American National 10-Q 7 Nov 14 2014 Q3 Quarterly report Financial data

Document_and_Entity_Informatio

Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Oct. 31, 2014
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]	'	'
Document Type	'10-Q	'
Amendment Flag	'false	'
Document Period End Date	30-Sep-14	'
Document Fiscal Year Focus	'2014	'
Document Fiscal Period Focus	'Q3	'
Entity Registrant Name	'AMERICAN NATIONAL INSURANCE CO /TX/	'
Entity Central Index Key	'0000904163	'
Current Fiscal Year End Date	'--12-31	'
Entity Filer Category	'Large Accelerated Filer	'
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding	'	26,871,942

Consolidated_Statements_of_Fin

Consolidated Statements of Financial Position (Unaudited) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
ASSETS	'	'
Fixed maturity, bonds held-to-maturity, at amortized cost (Fair Value $8,826,253 and $8,823,068)	$8,364,731	$8,491,347
Fixed maturity, bonds available-for-sale, at fair value (Amortized cost $4,700,235 and $4,456,391)	4,926,218	4,599,673
Equity securities, at fair value (Cost $745,733 and $741,080)	1,494,471	1,410,608
Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance	3,318,552	3,299,242
Policy loans	404,705	397,407
Investment real estate, net of accumulated depreciation of $181,125 and $211,575	458,116	507,142
Short-term investments	346,343	495,386
Other invested assets	202,131	201,442
Total investments	19,515,267	19,402,247
Cash and cash equivalents	136,142	117,946
Investments in unconsolidated affiliates	335,419	341,012
Accrued investment income	198,559	194,830
Reinsurance recoverables	410,525	414,743
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	55,681	57,869
Premiums due and other receivables	294,678	279,929
Deferred policy acquisition costs	1,249,704	1,277,733
Property and equipment, net	119,259	107,070
Current tax receivable	4,403	18,507
Other assets	148,448	142,043
Separate account assets	992,615	970,954
Total assets	23,460,700	23,324,883
LIABILITIES	'	'
Life	2,736,156	2,677,213
Annuity	982,720	903,437
Accident and health	70,699	71,941
Policyholders' account balances	10,893,918	11,181,650
Policy and contract claims	1,289,997	1,297,646
Unearned premium reserve	779,934	739,878
Other policyholder funds	332,411	326,885
Liability for retirement benefits	143,400	160,853
Notes payable	109,349	113,849
Deferred tax liabilities, net	286,545	220,428
Other liabilities	433,855	456,818
Separate account liabilities	992,615	970,954
Total liabilities	19,051,599	19,121,552
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY	'	'
Common stock, $1.00 par value,-Authorized 50,000,000 Issued 30,832,449 and 30,832,449, Outstanding 26,871,942 and 26,895,188 shares	30,832	30,832
Additional paid-in capital	8,862	4,650
Accumulated other comprehensive income	504,338	413,712
Retained earnings	3,954,731	3,838,821
Treasury stock, at cost	-101,941	-97,441
Total American National stockholders' equity	4,396,822	4,190,574
Noncontrolling interest	12,279	12,757
Total stockholders' equity	4,409,101	4,203,331
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	$23,460,700	$23,324,883

Consolidated_Statements_of_Fin1

Consolidated Statements of Financial Position (Unaudited) (Parenthetical) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified
Statement of Financial Position [Abstract]	'	'
Fair value of bonds held-to-maturity	$8,826,253	$8,823,068
Amortized cost of bonds available-for-sale	4,700,235	4,456,391
Cost of equity securities	745,733	741,080
Accumulated depreciation of investment real estate	$181,125	$211,575
Common stock, par value	$1	$1
Common stock, shares authorized	50,000,000	50,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	30,832,449	30,832,449
Common stock, shares outstanding	26,871,942	26,895,188

Consolidated_Statements_of_Ope

Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Premiums	'	'	'	'
Life	$79,492	$75,278	$224,165	$215,479
Annuity	34,661	23,412	148,250	89,733
Accident and health	53,454	52,839	164,169	159,100
Property and casualty	279,429	271,270	820,953	801,106
Other policy revenues	55,255	52,975	167,041	152,910
Net investment income	236,489	254,336	697,604	752,488
Realized investment gains (losses)	-649	43,795	27,548	107,473
Other-than-temporary impairments	-1,608	-312	-3,045	-3,503
Other income	9,647	11,911	26,707	29,423
Total premiums and other revenues	746,170	785,504	2,273,392	2,304,209
Policyholder benefits	'	'	'	'
Life	83,740	83,821	257,505	246,896
Annuity	43,893	34,860	180,372	118,155
Claims incurred	'	'	'	'
Accident and health	33,193	34,404	109,859	106,378
Property and casualty	180,413	182,809	563,650	581,042
Interest credited to policyholders' account balances	83,746	98,862	258,952	309,738
Commissions for acquiring and servicing policies	97,608	94,504	299,992	273,360
Other operating expenses	118,002	128,115	357,043	381,850
Change in deferred policy acquisition costs	10,800	7,265	10,854	19,568
Total benefits, losses and expenses	651,395	664,640	2,038,227	2,036,987
Income (loss) before federal income tax and equity in earnings/losses of unconsolidated affiliates	94,775	120,864	235,165	267,222
Less: Provision (benefit) for federal income taxes	'	'	'	'
Current	23,639	36,541	55,690	63,920
Deferred	3,110	-782	9,974	7,959
Total provision (benefit) for federal income taxes	26,749	35,759	65,664	71,879
Equity in earnings (losses) of unconsolidated affiliates, net of tax	2,735	121	10,405	9,774
Net income (loss)	70,761	85,226	179,906	205,117
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest, net of tax	2,877	2,613	1,883	4,364
Net income (loss) attributable to American National	$67,884	$82,613	$178,023	$200,753
Earnings per share	'	'	'	'
Basic	$2.53	$3.08	$6.64	$7.49
Diluted	$2.52	$3.07	$6.61	$7.46
Cash dividends to common stockholders	$0.77	$0.77	$2.31	$2.31
Weighted average common shares outstanding	26,805,535	26,780,313	26,800,835	26,789,564
Weighted average common shares outstanding and dilutive potential common shares	26,911,507	26,905,093	26,919,414	26,910,017

Consolidated_Statements_of_Com

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Unaudited) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]	'	'	'	'
Net income (loss)	$70,761	$85,226	$179,906	$205,117
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	'	'	'	'
Change in net unrealized gain (loss) on securities	-17,708	26,747	89,051	31,569
Foreign currency transaction and translation adjustments	-476	-625	-577	-211
Defined pension benefit plan adjustment	718	2,876	2,152	8,627
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	-17,466	28,998	90,626	39,985
Total comprehensive income (loss)	53,295	114,224	270,532	245,102
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest	2,877	2,613	1,883	4,364
Total comprehensive income (loss) attributable to American National	$50,418	$111,611	$268,649	$240,738

Consolidated_Statements_of_Cha

Consolidated Statements of Changes in Stockholders' Equity (Unaudited) (USD $)	Total	Common Stock [Member]	Additional Paid-In Capital [Member]	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Member]	Retained Earnings [Member]	Treasury Stock [Member]	Noncontrolling Interest [Member]
In Thousands
Balance at beginning of the period at Dec. 31, 2012	'	$30,832	$0	$242,010	$3,653,280	($98,286)	$11,491
Reissuance (purchases) of treasury shares	'	'	3,012	'	'	844	'
Contributions	'	'	'	'	'	'	456
Net income (loss) attributable to American National	200,753	'	'	'	200,753	'	'
Other comprehensive income (loss)	39,985	'	'	39,985	'	'	'
Income tax effect from restricted stock arrangement	'	'	80	'	'	'	'
Distributions	'	'	'	'	'	'	-2,675
Cash dividends to common stockholders	'	'	'	'	-62,122	'	'
Amortization of restricted stock	'	'	1,028	'	'	'	'
Gain (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest	'	'	'	'	'	'	4,364
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2013	4,025,052	30,832	4,120	281,995	3,791,911	-97,442	13,636
Balance at beginning of the period at Dec. 31, 2013	4,203,331	30,832	4,650	413,712	3,838,821	-97,441	12,757
Reissuance (purchases) of treasury shares	'	'	1,635	'	'	-4,500	'
Contributions	'	'	'	'	'	'	478
Net income (loss) attributable to American National	178,023	'	'	'	178,023	'	'
Other comprehensive income (loss)	90,626	'	'	90,626	'	'	'
Distributions	'	'	'	'	'	'	-2,839
Cash dividends to common stockholders	'	'	'	'	-62,113	'	'
Amortization of restricted stock	'	'	2,577	'	'	'	'
Gain (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest	'	'	'	'	'	'	1,883
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2014	$4,409,101	$30,832	$8,862	$504,338	$3,954,731	($101,941)	$12,279

Consolidated_Statements_of_Cas

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
OPERATING ACTIVITIES	'	'
Net income (loss)	$179,906	$205,117
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities	'	'
Realized investment (gains) losses	-27,548	-107,473
Other-than-temporary impairments	3,045	3,503
Accretion (amortization) of discounts, premiums and loan origination fees	6,316	4,460
Net capitalized interest on policy loans and mortgage loans	-23,988	-20,156
Depreciation	26,421	24,873
Interest credited to policyholders' account balances	258,952	309,738
Charges to policyholders' account balances	-167,041	-152,910
Deferred federal income tax (benefit) expense	9,974	7,959
Equity in (earnings) losses of unconsolidated affiliates	-10,405	-9,774
Distributions from equity method investments	679	18,925
Changes in	'	'
Policyholder liabilities	166,392	48,816
Deferred policy acquisition costs	10,854	19,568
Reinsurance recoverables	4,218	17,883
Premiums due and other receivables	-15,189	-26,248
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	2,188	4,945
Accrued investment income	-3,729	3,630
Current tax receivable/payable	14,104	30,975
Liability for retirement benefits	-17,453	8,093
Other, net	-44,626	-38,730
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities	373,070	353,194
Proceeds from sale/maturity/prepayment of	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities	442,748	1,209,058
Available-for-sale securities	705,681	702,625
Investment real estate	45,843	84,371
Mortgage loans	421,023	446,480
Policy loans	41,331	43,911
Other invested assets	34,537	11,021
Disposals of property and equipment	2,571	674
Distributions from unconsolidated affiliates	49,403	22,834
Payment for the purchase/origination of	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities	-356,452	-856,086
Available-for-sale securities	-883,346	-737,342
Investment real estate	-28,865	-35,240
Mortgage loans	-444,140	-638,690
Policy loans	-21,721	-19,564
Other invested assets	-14,376	-13,690
Additions to property and equipment	-13,038	-17,958
Contributions to unconsolidated affiliates	-40,333	-94,078
Change in short-term investments	149,043	-26,393
Other, net	3,834	8,561
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	93,743	90,494
FINANCING ACTIVITIES	'	'
Policyholders' account deposits	783,255	654,346
Policyholders' account withdrawals	-1,162,898	-1,164,806
Change in notes payable	-4,500	-49,258
Dividends to stockholders	-62,113	-62,122
Proceeds from (payments to) noncontrolling interest	-2,361	-2,219
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities	-448,617	-624,059
NET INCREASE (DECREASE) IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS	18,196	-180,371
Beginning of the period	117,946	303,008
End of period	$136,142	$122,637

Nature_of_Operations

Nature of Operations	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]	'
Nature of Operations	'
	1. NATURE OF OPERATIONS
	American National Insurance Company and its consolidated subsidiaries (collectively “American National”) offer a broad spectrum of insurance products, including individual and group life insurance, annuities, health insurance, and property and casualty insurance. Business is conducted in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and American Samoa.

Summary_of_Significant_Account

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Practices	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]	'
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Practices	'
	2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND PRACTICES
	The consolidated financial statements and notes thereto have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and are reported in U.S. currency. American National consolidates entities that are wholly-owned and those in which American National owns less than 100% but controls, as well as variable interest entities in which American National is the primary beneficiary. Intercompany balances and transactions with consolidated entities have been eliminated. Investments in unconsolidated affiliates are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. Certain amounts in prior years have been reclassified to conform to current year presentation.
	The interim consolidated financial statements and notes herein are unaudited and reflect all adjustments which management considers necessary for the fair presentation of the interim consolidated statements of financial position, operations, comprehensive income (loss), changes in stockholders’ equity, and cash flows.
	The interim consolidated financial statements and notes should be read in conjunction with the annual consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in American National’s Annual Report on Form 10-K as of and for the year ended December 31, 2013. The consolidated results of operations for the interim periods should not be considered indicative of results to be expected for the full year.
	The preparation of the consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires the use of estimates and assumptions that affect the reported consolidated financial statement balances. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Recently_Issued_Accounting_Pro

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Accounting Changes and Error Corrections [Abstract]	'
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements	'
	3. RECENTLY ISSUED ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS
	Adoption of New Accounting Standards—The Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued the following accounting guidance relevant to American National, including technical amendments and corrections to make the accounting standards easier to understand and fair value measurement easier to apply. Each became effective for American National on January 1, 2014 and, unless stated otherwise, did not have a material effect on the consolidated financial statements.
	Amended guidance for the recognition, measurement, and disclosure of obligations resulting from joint and several liability arrangements for which the total amount of the obligation within the scope of the guidance is fixed at the reporting date. The amended guidance requires the entity to measure obligations resulting from joint and several liability arrangements as the sum of the amount the reporting entity agreed with co-obligors to pay and any additional amounts it expects to pay on behalf of one or more co-obligors.
	Future Adoption of New Accounting Standards—The FASB issued the following accounting standards relevant to American National:
	Guidance that allows investors to elect the use of proportional amortization method to account for investments in qualified affordable housing projects, if certain conditions are met. The new guidance replaces the effective yield method and allows an investor to amortize the cost of its investment, in proportion to the tax credits and other tax benefits it receives, to income tax expense. The guidance requires new disclosure for all investors for all investments in qualified affordable housing projects, regardless of the accounting method used for those investments.
	Guidance that will supersede most existing revenue recognition requirements in U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. The Standard will become effective for American National on January 1, 2017 and allows for both retrospective and prospective methods of adoption. American National is in the process of determining the adoption method and is currently assessing the impact of this standard.

Investments_in_Securities

Investments in Securities	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Investments, Debt and Equity Securities [Abstract]	'
Investments in Securities	'
	4. INVESTMENTS IN SECURITIES
	The cost or amortized cost and fair value of investments in securities are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014
		Cost or			Gross			Gross			Fair Value
		Amortized Cost			Unrealized			Unrealized
					Gains			(Losses)
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. states and political subdivisions	$	327,022		$	25,144		$	(67	)	$	352,099
	Foreign governments		29,122			1,641			—			30,763
	Corporate debt securities		7,636,327			453,220			(40,292	)		8,049,255
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		353,444			22,178			(1,921	)		373,701
	Collateralized debt securities		2,236			223			—			2,459
	Other debt securities		16,580			1,396			—			17,976
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		8,364,731			503,802			(42,280	)		8,826,253
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. treasury and government		24,073			783			—			24,856
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		746,801			33,661			(2,940	)		777,522
	Foreign governments		5,000			1,900			—			6,900
	Corporate debt securities		3,866,518			206,396			(16,342	)		4,056,572
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		45,644			2,112			(754	)		47,002
	Collateralized debt securities		12,199			1,175			(8	)		13,366
	Total bonds available-for-sale		4,700,235			246,027			(20,044	)		4,926,218
	Equity securities
	Common stock		722,015			734,419			(3,791	)		1,452,643
	Preferred stock		23,718			18,123			(13	)		41,828
	Total equity securities		745,733			752,542			(3,804	)		1,494,471
	Total investments in securities	$	13,810,699		$	1,502,371		$	(66,128	)	$	15,246,942
		December 31, 2013
		Cost or			Gross			Gross			Fair Value
		Amortized Cost			Unrealized			Unrealized
					Gains			(Losses)
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. treasury and government	$	1,738		$	6		$	—		$	1,744
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		346,240			16,945			(529	)		362,656
	Foreign governments		29,099			2,505			—			31,604
	Corporate debt securities		7,700,559			410,232			(116,900	)		7,993,891
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		400,619			20,711			(2,647	)		418,683
	Collateralized debt securities		2,366			225			—			2,591
	Other debt securities		10,726			1,173			—			11,899
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		8,491,347			451,797			(120,076	)		8,823,068
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. treasury and government		21,751			725			—			22,476
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		630,199			22,118			(13,756	)		638,561
	Foreign governments		5,000			1,649			—			6,649
	Corporate debt securities		3,689,349			171,717			(54,033	)		3,807,033
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		61,135			2,940			(1,068	)		63,007
	Commercial mortgage-backed securities		18,223			11,037			—			29,260
	Collateralized debt securities		13,884			1,320			(18	)		15,186
	Other debt securities		16,850			679			(28	)		17,501
	Total bonds available-for-sale		4,456,391			212,185			(68,903	)		4,599,673
	Equity securities
	Common stock		717,390			653,967			(2,362	)		1,368,995
	Preferred stock		23,690			18,301			(378	)		41,613
	Total equity securities		741,080			672,268			(2,740	)		1,410,608
	Total investments in securities	$	13,688,818		$	1,336,250		$	(191,719	)	$	14,833,349
	The amortized costs and fair values, by contractual maturity, of fixed maturity securities are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014
		Bonds Held-to-Maturity						Bonds Available-for-Sale
		Amortized Cost			Fair Value			Amortized Cost			Fair Value
	Due in one year or less	$	902,160		$	921,894		$	345,538		$	351,549
	Due after one year through five years		2,046,277			2,257,421			855,878			932,247
	Due after five years through ten years		4,988,483			5,196,155			3,029,503			3,154,290
	Due after ten years		421,961			445,711			464,316			483,132
Without single maturity date		5,850			5,072			5,000			5,000
Total	$	8,364,731		$	8,826,253		$	4,700,235		$	4,926,218
Actual maturities differ from contractual maturities because borrowers may have the right to call or prepay obligations with or without call or prepayment penalties. Residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities, which are not due at a single maturity, have been allocated to their respective categories based on the year of final contractual maturity.
Proceeds from sales of available-for-sale securities, with the related gross realized gains and losses, are shown below (in thousands):
	Three months ended September 30 ,						Nine months ended September 30,
	2014			2013			2014			2013
Proceeds from sales of available-for-sale securities	$	2,671		$	33,390		$	139,137		$	189,438
Gross realized gains		228			10,349			24,994			33,699
Gross realized losses		—			(97	)		(2,123	)		(623	)
All gains and losses for securities sold throughout the periods presented were determined using specific identification of the securities sold. During the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and 2013, bonds with a carrying value of $44,781,000 and $13,492,000, respectively, were transferred from held-to-maturity to available-for-sale after a significant deterioration in the issuers’ creditworthiness became evident. An unrealized gain of $1,301,000 and unrealized loss of $263,000 were established in 2014 and 2013, respectively following the transfers at fair value.
Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities
The components of the change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities are shown below (in thousands):
	Nine months ended September 30,
	2014			2013
Bonds available-for-sale	$	82,701		$	(163,493	)
Equity securities		79,211			165,613
Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities during the year		161,912			2,120
Adjustments for
Deferred policy acquisition costs		(17,175	)		46,643
Participating policyholders’ interest		(8,526	)		1,018
Deferred federal income tax benefit (expense)		(47,160	)		(18,212	)
Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities, net of tax	$	89,051		$	31,569
The gross unrealized losses and fair value of the investment securities, aggregated by investment category and length of time that individual securities have been in a continuous unrealized loss position, are shown below (in thousands):
	September 30, 2014
	Less than 12 months						12 Months or more						Total
	Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair
	(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value
Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
U.S. states and political subdivisions	$	(2	)	$	588		$	(65	)	$	2,455		$	(67	)	$	3,043
Corporate debt securities		(7,727	)		511,249			(32,565	)		799,719			(40,292	)		1,310,968
Residential mortgage-backed securities		(225	)		18,589			(1,696	)		31,203			(1,921	)		49,792
Total bonds held-to-maturity		(7,954	)		530,426			(34,326	)		833,377			(42,280	)		1,363,803
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
U.S. Treasury & other U.S. Gov corporations and agencies		—			476			—			—			—			476
U.S. states and political subdivisions		(449	)		37,887			(2,491	)		79,485			(2,940	)		117,372
Corporate debt securities		(5,167	)		372,578			(11,175	)		338,870			(16,342	)		711,448
Residential mortgage-backed securities		(147	)		10,908			(607	)		13,835			(754	)		24,743
Collateralized debt securities		(1	)		117			(7	)		361			(8	)		478
Other Debt Securities		—			—			—			—			—			—
Total bonds available-for-sale		(5,764	)		421,966			(14,280	)		432,551			(20,044	)		854,517
Equity securities
Common stock		(3,791	)		37,132			—			—			(3,791	)		37,132
Preferred stock		(13	)		1,874			—			—			(13	)		1,874
Total equity securities		(3,804	)		39,006			—			—			(3,804	)		39,006
Total	$	(17,522	)	$	991,398		$	(48,606	)	$	1,265,928		$	(66,128	)	$	2,257,326
	December 31, 2013
	Less than 12 months						12 Months or more						Total
	Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair
	(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value
Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
U.S. states and political subdivisions	$	(529	)	$	22,430		$	—		$	—		$	(529	)	$	22,430
Corporate debt securities		(104,308	)		1,916,758			(12,592	)		109,603			(116,900	)		2,026,361
Residential mortgage-backed securities		(1,718	)		31,715			(929	)		13,514			(2,647	)		45,229
Total bonds held-to-maturity		(106,555	)		1,970,903			(13,521	)		123,117			(120,076	)		2,094,020
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
U.S. Treasury & other U.S. Gov corporations and agencies		—			725			—			—			—			725
U.S. states and political subdivisions		(13,271	)		168,093			(485	)		2,905			(13,756	)		170,998
Corporate debt securities		(49,198	)		1,083,677			(4,835	)		92,004			(54,033	)		1,175,681
Residential mortgage-backed securities		(978	)		16,835			(90	)		1,872			(1,068	)		18,707
Collateralized debt securities		(3	)		205			(15	)		587			(18	)		792
Other debt securities		(28	)		10,027			—			—			(28	)		10,027
Total bonds available-for-sale		(63,478	)		1,279,562			(5,425	)		97,368			(68,903	)		1,376,930
Equity securities
Common stock		(2,362	)		29,978			—			—			(2,362	)		29,978
Preferred stock		(378	)		6,123			—			—			(378	)		6,123
Total equity securities		(2,740	)		36,101			—			—			(2,740	)		36,101
Total	$	(172,773	)	$	3,286,566		$	(18,946	)	$	220,485		$	(191,719	)	$	3,507,051
As of September 30, 2014, the securities with unrealized losses were not deemed to be other-than-temporarily impaired, including those with the duration of the unrealized losses exceeding one year. American National has the ability and intent to hold those securities until a market price recovery or maturity. Further, it is not more-likely-than-not that American National will be required to sell them prior to recovery, and recovery is expected in a reasonable period of time. It is possible an issuer’s financial circumstances may be different in the future, which may lead to a different impairment conclusion in future periods.
Credit Risk Management
Bonds distributed by credit quality rating, using both S&P and Moody’s ratings, are shown below:
	September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
AAA		4.9	%		4.9	%
AA		12.5			11.3
A		40.1			40.7
BBB		39			39.2
BB and below		3.5			3.9
Total		100	%		100	%
Equity securities by market sector distribution are shown below:
	September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
Consumer goods		19.2	%		19.8	%
Energy and utilities		14.7			15
Financials		18.8			19.3
Healthcare		13.8			12.7
Industrials		8.4			9
Information technology		16.3			15.7
Other		8.8			8.5
Total		100	%		100	%

Mortgage_Loans

Mortgage Loans	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Receivables [Abstract]	'
Mortgage Loans	'
	5. MORTGAGE LOANS
	Generally, commercial mortgage loans are secured by first liens on income-producing real estate. American National attempts to maintain a diversified portfolio by considering the property-type and location of the underlying collateral. Mortgage loans by property-type and geographic distribution are as follows:
		September 30, 2014				December 31, 2013
	Hotel and motel		11.3	%			10	%
	Industrial		21.2				24.9
	Office		35.6				34
	Retail		18.2				19.6
	Other		13.7				11.5
	Total		100	%			100	%
		September 30, 2014				December 31, 2013
	East North Central		19.5	%			19.3	%
	East South Central		5				6.8
	Mountain		10.3				10
	Pacific		12.3				12.3
	South Atlantic		21				19.6
	West South Central		25.1				26.4
	Other		6.8				5.6
	Total		100	%			100	%
	As of September 30, 2014, American National was in the process of foreclosure on two loans with a recorded investment of $15,945,000; there was one loan foreclosed in the same period in 2013 with a recorded investment of $5,600,000. No loans were sold in the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and 2013.
	Credit Quality
	The credit quality of the mortgage loan portfolio is assessed by evaluating the credit risk of each borrower. A loan is classified as performing or non-performing based on whether all of the contractual terms of the loan have been met.
	The age analysis of past due commercial mortgage loans is shown below (in thousands):
		30-59 Days				60-89 Days				Greater Than				Total Past				Current				Total
		Past Due				Past Due				90 Days				Due								Mortgage Loans
	September 30, 2014
	Industrial	$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	705,801			$	705,801
	Office		—				—				—				—				1,191,525				1,191,525
	Retail		—				—				—				—				610,335				610,335
	Other		—				—				—				—				828,496				828,496
	Total	$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	3,336,157				3,336,157
	Allowance for loan losses																						17,605
	Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance																					$	3,318,552
	December 31, 2013
	Industrial	$	—			$	—			$	2,739			$	2,739			$	821,741			$	824,480
	Office		—				—				—				—				1,124,818				1,124,818
	Retail		—				—				—				—				651,236				651,236
	Other		—				—				—				—				710,889				710,889
	Total	$	—			$	—			$	2,739			$	2,739			$	3,308,684				3,311,423
	Allowance for loan losses																						12,181
	Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance																					$	3,299,242
	Commercial mortgage loans placed on nonaccrual status are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30,				December 31,
		2014				2013
	Industrial	$	—			$	2,739
	Total mortgage loans are net of unamortized discounts of $708,000 and $852,000 and unamortized origination fees of $16,378,000 and $15,709,000 at September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, respectively. No unearned income is included in these amounts.
	Allowance for Credit Losses
	Loans not evaluated individually for collectability are segregated by property-type and location, and allowance factors are applied. These factors are developed annually and reviewed quarterly based on our historical loss experience adjusted for the expected trend in the rate of foreclosure losses. Allowance factors are higher for loans of certain property types and in certain regions based on loss experience or a blended historical loss factor.
	The change in allowance for credit losses in commercial mortgage loans is shown below (in thousands):
		Nine months ended September 30, 2014
		Collectively				Individually
		Evaluated				Evaluated
		for Impairment				for Impairment
	Beginning balance, 2014	$	11,688			$	493
	Change Due to Factor Development		(441	)			—
	Change in allowance		775				5,090
	Ending balance, 2014	$	12,022			$	5,583
	At September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, the recorded investment for loans collectively evaluated for impairment was $3,279,133,000 and $3,294,235,000, respectively, and the recorded investment for loans individually evaluated for impairment was $57,024,000 and $17,188,000, respectively.
	Loans individually evaluated for impairment with and without an allowance are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014								September 30, 2013
		Average				Interest				Average				Interest
		Recorded				Income				Recorded				Income
		Investment				Recognized				Investment				Recognized
	Three months ended
With an allowance recorded
Office	$	27,564			$	547			$	23,159			$	393
Retail		—				—				493				—
Total	$	27,564			$	547			$	23,652			$	393
Without an allowance recorded
Office	$	26,941			$	431			$	6,432			$	110
Industrial		2,702				36				—				—
Retail		851				11				—				—
Total	$	30,494			$	478			$	6,432			$	110
Nine months ended
With an allowance recorded
Office	$	29,421			$	1,663			$	23,234			$	1,192
Retail		—				—				493				—
Total	$	29,421			$	1,663			$	23,727			$	1,192
Without an allowance recorded
Office	$	27,019			$	1,298			$	6,439			$	331
Industrial		2,721				110				—				—
Retail		1,149				16				—				—
Total	$	30,889			$	1,424			$	6,439			$	331
	30-Sep-14								31-Dec-13
	Recorded				Unpaid				Recorded				Unpaid
	Investment				Principal				Investment				Principal
					Balance								Balance
With an allowance recorded
Office	$	26,662			$	27,947			$	—			$	—
Retail		—				—				493				493
Total	$	26,662			$	27,947			$	493			$	493
Without an allowance recorded
Office	$	26,941			$	26,941			$	12,377			$	12,377
Industrial		2,702				2,702				2,739				2,739
Retail		719				719				1,579				1,579
Total	$	30,362			$	30,362			$	16,695			$	16,695
Troubled Debt Restructurings
American National has granted concessions to mortgage loan borrowers related to their ability to pay the loans which are classified as troubled debt restructurings. Concessions are generally one of, or a combination of, a delay in payment of principal or interest, a reduction of the contractual interest rate or an extension of the maturity date. American National considers the amount, timing and extent of concessions in determining any impairment or changes in the specific allowance for loan losses recorded in connection with a troubled debt restructuring. The carrying value after specific allowance, before and after modification in a troubled debt restructuring, may not decrease significantly, or may increase if the expected recovery is higher than the pre-modification recovery assessment.
The number of mortgage loans and recorded investments in troubled debt restructuring are as follows (in thousands except for number of contracts):
	Nine months ended September 30,
	2014										2013
	Number of		Recorded				Recorded				Number of				Recorded				Recorded
			investment pre-				investment post				contracts				investment pre-				investment post
	contracts		modification				modification								modification				modification
Office	3		$	34,400			$	30,996				1			$	6,432			$	6,432
There were no commitments to lend additional funds to debtors whose loans have been modified in troubled debt restructuring. One restructured loan is in the process of foreclosure.

Investment_Real_Estate

Investment Real Estate	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Real Estate [Abstract]	'
Investment Real Estate	'
	6. INVESTMENT REAL ESTATE
	Investment real estate by property-type and geographic distribution are as follows:
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	Industrial		13.8	%		12.3	%
	Office		20.7			23.1
	Retail		46.4			43.4
	Other		19.1			21.2
	Total		100	%		100	%
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	East North Central		4.8	%		7.8	%
	East South Central		4.8			5.4
	Mountain		6.5			6
	Pacific		7.4			5.5
	South Atlantic		12.7			13.4
	West South Central		57.1			59
	Other		6.7			2.9
	Total		100	%		100	%
	American National regularly invests in real estate partnerships and joint ventures. American National frequently participates in the design of these entities with the sponsor, but in most cases, its involvement is limited to financing. Through analysis performed by American National, some of these partnerships and joint ventures have been determined to be variable interest entities (“VIEs”). In certain instances, in addition to an economic interest in the entity, American National holds the power to direct the most significant activities of the entity and is deemed the primary beneficiary or consolidator of the entity. The assets of the consolidated VIEs are restricted and must first be used to settle their liabilities. Creditors or beneficial interest holders of these VIEs have no recourse to the general credit of American National, as American National’s obligation is limited to the amount of its committed investment. American National has not provided financial or other support to the VIEs in the form of liquidity arrangements, guarantees, or other commitments to third parties that may affect the fair value or risk of its variable interest in the VIEs in 2014 or 2013.
	The assets and liabilities relating to the VIEs included in the consolidated financial statements are as follows (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	Investment real estate	$	138,994		$	123,624
	Cash and cash equivalents		1,761			2,154
	Accrued investment income		412			2,197
	Other receivables		7,986			8,488
	Other assets		5,686			6,016
	Total assets of consolidated VIEs	$	154,839		$	142,479
	Notes payable	$	109,349		$	113,849
	Other liabilities		4,595			6,680
	Total liabilities of consolidated VIEs	$	113,944		$	120,529
	The notes payable in the consolidated statements of financial position pertain to the borrowings of the consolidated VIEs. The liability of American National Insurance Company relating to notes payable of the consolidated VIEs is limited to the amount of its direct or indirect investment in the respective ventures, which totaled $14,948,000 and $12,782,000 at September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, respectively. The current portion of notes payable was $543,000 and $3,199,000 at September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, respectively. The average interest rate on the current portion of the notes payable was 4.25% during 2014. The total long-term portion of notes payable consists of three notes with the following interest rates: 4.0 %, and adjusted LIBOR plus 1.0%. Of the long-term notes payable, $9,375,000 will mature in 2016, with the remainder maturing beyond 5 years.
	For other VIEs in which American National invests, it is not the primary beneficiary and these entities were not consolidated, as the major decisions that most significantly impact the economic activities of the VIE require unanimous consent of all owners. The following table presents the carrying amount and maximum exposure to loss relating to unconsolidated VIEs (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014						December 31, 2013
		Carrying			Maximum			Carrying		Maximum
		Amount			Exposure			Amount		Exposure
					to Loss					to Loss
	Investment in unconsolidated affiliates	$	195,794		$	195,794		$	195,794	$	195,794
	Mortgage loans		153,626			153,626			101,648		101,648
	Accrued investment income		617			617			454		454

Derivative_Instruments

Derivative Instruments	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities Disclosure [Abstract]	'
Derivative Instruments	'
	7. DERIVATIVE INSTRUMENTS
	American National purchases over-the-counter equity-indexed options as economic hedges against fluctuations in the equity markets to which equity-indexed policies are exposed. Equity-indexed policies include a fixed host universal-life insurance or annuity policy and an equity-indexed embedded derivative. The detail of derivative instruments is shown below (in thousands, except the number of instruments):
			September 30, 2014									December 31, 2013
	Derivatives Not Designated	Location in the	Number of			Notional			Estimated			Number of			Notional		Estimated
	as Hedging Instruments	Consolidated Statements of Financial Position	Instruments			Amounts			Fair Value			Instruments			Amounts		Fair Value
	Equity-indexed options	Other invested assets		416		$	1,034,600		$	170,343			394		$	951,400	$	164,753
	Equity-indexed embedded derivative	Policyholders’ account balances		39,723			957,600			191,760			33,579			819,200		148,435
	Derivatives Not Designated	Location in the	Gains (Losses) Recognized in Income on Derivatives
	as Hedging Instruments	Consolidated Statements of
			Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		Operations	2014			2013			2014			2013
	Equity-indexed options	Net investment income	$	6,562		$	13,260		$	29,011		$	48,019
	Equity-indexed embedded derivative	Interest credited to policyholders’ account balances		(1,762	)		(11,056	)		(16,484	)		(39,750	)

Net_Investment_Income_and_Real

Net Investment Income and Realized Investment Gains (Losses)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Text Block [Abstract]	'
Net Investment Income and Realized Investment Gains (Losses)	'
	8. NET INVESTMENT INCOME AND REALIZED INVESTMENT GAINS (LOSSES)
	Net investment income is shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Bonds	$	148,715		$	157,888		$	450,110		$	479,296
	Equity securities		8,146			7,417			26,488			22,653
	Mortgage loans		51,652			55,629			159,010			163,497
	Real estate		14,245			11,297			11,347			10,228
	Options		6,562			13,260			29,011			48,019
	Other invested assets		7,169			8,845			21,638			28,795
	Total	$	236,489		$	254,336		$	697,604		$	752,488
	Realized investment gains (losses) are shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Bonds	$	1,925		$	9,907		$	21,837		$	16,826
	Equity securities		229			10,149			10,293			30,668
	Mortgage loans		(1,551	)		(1,561	)		(5,424	)		(1,172	)
	Real estate		(1,242	)		25,311			1,787			61,257
	Other invested assets		(10	)		(11	)		(945	)		(106	)
	Total	$	(649	)	$	43,795		$	27,548		$	107,473
	The other-than-temporary-impairment losses are shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Bonds	$	—		$	—		$	(41	)	$	—
	Equity securities		(1,608	)		(312	)		(3,004	)		(3,503	)
	Total	$	(1,608	)	$	(312	)	$	(3,045	)	$	(3,503	)

Fair_Value_of_Financial_Instru

Fair Value of Financial Instruments	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]	'
Fair Value of Financial Instruments	'
	9. FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
	The carrying amount and fair value of financial instruments are shown below (in thousands):
			September 30, 2014						December 31, 2013
			Carrying						Carrying
			Amount			Fair Value			Amount			Fair Value
	Financial assets
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity		$	8,364,731		$	8,826,253		$	8,491,347		$	8,823,068
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale			4,926,218			4,926,218			4,599,673			4,599,673
	Equity securities			1,494,471			1,494,471			1,410,608			1,410,608
	Equity-indexed options			170,343			170,343			164,753			164,753
	Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance			3,318,552			3,515,463			3,299,242			3,470,663
	Policy loans			404,705			404,705			397,407			397,407
	Short-term investments			346,343			346,343			495,386			495,386
	Separate account assets			992,615			992,615			970,954			970,954
	Total financial assets		$	20,017,978		$	20,676,411		$	19,829,370		$	20,332,512
	Financial liabilities
	Investment contracts		$	9,039,356		$	9,039,356		$	9,423,122		$	9,423,122
	Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts			191,760			191,760			148,435			148,435
	Notes payable			109,349			109,349			113,849			113,849
	Separate account liabilities			992,615			992,615			970,954			970,954
	Total financial liabilities		$	10,333,080		$	10,333,080		$	10,656,360		$	10,656,360
	Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability. A fair value hierarchy is used to determine fair value based on a hypothetical transaction at the measurement date from the perspective of a market participant. American National has evaluated the types of securities in its investment portfolio to determine an appropriate hierarchy level based upon trading activity and the observability of market inputs. The classification of assets or liabilities within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of significant input to its valuation. The input levels are defined as follows:
	Level 1	Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.
	Level 2	Quoted prices in markets that are not active or inputs that are observable directly or indirectly. Level 2 inputs include quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities other than quoted prices in Level 1; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.
	Level 3	Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities. Unobservable inputs reflect American National’s own assumptions about the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability. Level 3 assets and liabilities include financial instruments whose values are determined using pricing models and third-party evaluation, as well as instruments for which the determination of fair value requires significant management judgment or estimation.
	Fixed Maturity Securities and Equity Options—American National utilizes a pricing service to estimate fair value measurements. The estimates of fair value for most fixed maturity securities, including municipal bonds, provided by the pricing service are disclosed as Level 2 measurements as the estimates are based on observable market information rather than market quotes.
	The pricing service utilizes market quotations for fixed maturity securities that have quoted prices in active markets. Since fixed maturity securities generally do not trade on a daily basis, the pricing service prepares estimates of fair value measurements for these securities using its proprietary pricing applications, which include available relevant market information, benchmark curves, benchmarking of like securities, sector groupings and matrix pricing. Additionally, an option adjusted spread model is used to develop prepayment and interest rate scenarios.
	The pricing service evaluates each asset class based on relevant market information, credit information, perceived market movements and sector news. The market inputs utilized in the pricing evaluation, listed in the approximate order of priority, include: benchmark yields, reported trades, broker/dealer quotes, issuer spreads, two-sided markets, benchmark securities, bids, offers, reference data, and economic events. The extent of the use of each market input depends on the asset class and the market conditions. Depending on the security, the priority of the use of inputs may change or some market inputs may not be relevant. For some securities, additional inputs may be necessary.
	American National has reviewed the inputs and methodology used and the techniques applied by the pricing service to produce quotes that represent the fair value of a specific security. The review confirms that the pricing service is utilizing information from observable transactions or a technique that represents a market participant’s assumptions. American National does not adjust quotes received from the pricing service. The pricing service utilized by American National has indicated that they will produce an estimate of fair value only if there is objectively verifiable information available.
	American National holds a small amount of private placement debt and fixed maturity securities that have characteristics that make them unsuitable for matrix pricing. For these securities, a quote from an independent broker (typically a market maker) is obtained. Due to the disclaimers on the quotes that indicate that the price is indicative only, American National includes these fair value estimates in Level 3.
	For securities priced using a quote from an independent broker, such as the equity options and certain fixed maturity securities, American National uses a market-based fair value analysis to validate the reasonableness of prices received from an independent broker. Price variances above a certain threshold are analyzed further to determine if any pricing issue exists. This analysis is performed quarterly.
	Equity Securities—For publicly-traded equity securities, prices are received from a nationally recognized pricing service that are based on observable market transactions, and these securities are classified as Level 1 measurements. For certain preferred stock, current market quotes in active markets are unavailable. In these instances, an estimate of fair value is received from the pricing service. The service utilizes similar methodologies to price preferred stocks as it does for fixed maturity securities. These estimates are disclosed as Level 2 measurements. American National tests the accuracy of the information provided by reference to other services regularly.
	Mortgage Loans—The estimated fair value of mortgage loans is determined on a loan by loan basis by applying a discount rate to expected cash flows from future installment and balloon payments. The discount rate takes into account general market trends and specific credit risk trends for the individual loan. Factors used to arrive at the discount rate include inputs from spreads based on U.S. Treasury notes and the loan’s credit quality, region, property type, lien priority, payment type and current status.
	Embedded Derivative—The embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts is measured at fair value and is recalculated each reporting period using equity option pricing models. To validate the assumptions used to price the embedded derivative liability, American National measures and compares embedded derivative returns against the returns of equity options held to hedge the liability cash flows.
	The significant unobservable input used to calculate the fair value of the embedded derivatives is equity option implied volatility. An increase in implied volatility will result in an increase in the value of the equity-indexed embedded derivatives, all other things being equal. At September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, the one year implied volatility used to estimate embedded derivative value was 16.0% and 15.0%, respectively.
	Other Financial Instruments—Other financial instruments classified as Level 3 measurements, as there is little or no market activity, are as follows:
	Policy loans—The carrying value of policy loans is the outstanding balance plus any accrued interest. Due to the collateralized nature of policy loans, that it cannot be separated from the policy contract and the unpredictable timing of repayments and that settlement is at outstanding value, American National believes the carrying value of policy loans approximates fair value.
	Investment contracts —The carrying value of investment contracts is equivalent to the accrued account balance. The accrued account balance consists of deposits, net of withdrawals, plus or minus interest credited, fees and charges assessed and other adjustments. American National believes that the carrying value of investment contracts approximates fair value because the majority of these contracts’ interest rates reset to current rates offered at anniversary.
	Notes payable—Notes payable are carried at outstanding principal balance. The carrying value of the notes payable approximates fair value because the underlying interest rates approximate market rates at the balance sheet date.
	Quantitative Disclosures
	The fair value hierarchy measurements of the financial instruments are shown below (in thousands):
			Fair Value Measurement as of September 30, 2014
			Total			Level 1			Level 2			Level 3
			Fair Value
	Financial assets
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		$	352,099		$	—		$	352,099		$	—
	Foreign governments			30,763			—			30,763			—
	Corporate debt securities			8,049,255			—			7,998,901			50,354
	Residential mortgage-backed securities			373,701			—			372,724			977
	Collateralized debt securities			2,459			—			—			2,459
	Other debt securities			17,976			—			13,113			4,863
	Total bonds held-to-maturity			8,826,253			—			8,767,600			58,653
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. treasury and government			24,856			—			24,856			—
	U.S. states and political subdivisions			777,522			—			775,012			2,510
	Foreign governments			6,900			—			6,900			—
	Corporate debt securities			4,056,572			—			4,021,030			35,542
	Residential mortgage-backed securities			47,002			—			45,076			1,926
	Collateralized debt securities			13,366			—			11,200			2,166
	Total bonds available-for-sale			4,926,218			—			4,884,074			42,144
	Equity securities
	Common stock			1,452,643			1,452,643			—			—
Preferred stock			41,828			41,828			—			—
Total equity securities			1,494,471			1,494,471			—			—
Options			170,343			—			—			170,343
Mortgage loans on real estate			3,515,463			—			3,515,463			—
Policy loans			404,705			—			—			404,705
Short-term investments			346,343			—			346,343			—
Separate account assets			992,615			—			992,615			—
Total financial assets		$	20,676,411		$	1,494,471		$	18,506,095		$	675,845
Financial liabilities
Investment contracts		$	9,039,356		$	—		$	—		$	9,039,356
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts			191,760			—			—			191,760
Notes payable			109,349			—			—			109,349
Separate account liabilities			992,615			—			992,615			—
Total financial liabilities		$	10,333,080		$	—		$	992,615		$	9,340,465
		Fair Value Measurement as of December 31, 2013
		Total			Level 1			Level 2			Level 3
		Fair Value
Financial assets
Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
U.S. treasury and government		$	1,744		$	—		$	1,744		$	—
U.S. states and political subdivisions			362,656			—			362,656			—
Foreign governments			31,604			—			31,604			—
Corporate debt securities			7,993,891			—			7,950,418			43,473
Residential mortgage-backed securities			418,683			—			417,688			995
Collateralized debt securities			2,591			—			—			2,591
Other debt securities			11,899			—			11,899			—
Total bonds held-to-maturity			8,823,068			—			8,776,009			47,059
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
U.S. treasury and government			22,476			—			22,476			—
U.S. states and political subdivisions			638,561			—			636,041			2,520
Foreign governments			6,649			—			6,649			—
Corporate debt securities			3,807,033			—			3,794,809			12,224
Residential mortgage-backed securities			63,007			—			60,841			2,166
Commercial mortgage-backed securities			29,260			—			—			29,260
Collateralized debt securities			15,186			—			13,052			2,134
Other debt securities			17,501			—			17,501			—
Total bonds available-for-sale			4,599,673			—			4,551,369			48,304
Equity securities
Common stock			1,368,995			1,368,995			—			—
Preferred stock			41,613			41,613			—			—
Total equity securities			1,410,608			1,410,608			—			—
Options			164,753			—			—			164,753
Mortgage loans on real estate			3,470,663			—			3,470,663			—
Policy loans			397,407			—			—			397,407
Short-term investments			495,386			—			495,386			—
Separate account assets			970,954			—			970,954			—
Total financial assets		$	20,332,512		$	1,410,608		$	18,264,381		$	657,523
Financial liabilities
Investment contracts		$	9,423,122		$	—		$	—		$	9,423,122
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts			148,435			—			—			148,435
Notes payable			113,849			—			—			113,849
Separate account liabilities			970,954			—			970,954			—
Total financial liabilities		$	10,656,360		$	—		$	970,954		$	9,685,406
For financial instruments measured at fair value on a recurring basis using Level 3 inputs during the period, a reconciliation of the beginning and ending balances is shown below (in thousands):
		Level 3
		Three months ended September 30,									Nine months ended September 30,
		Assets						Liability			Assets						Liability
					Equity-									Equity-
		Investment			Indexed			Embedded			Investment			Indexed			Embedded
		Securities			Options			Derivative			Securities			Options			Derivative
Beginning balance, 2014		$	11,932		$	163,861		$	186,261		$	48,304		$	164,753		$	148,435
Total realized and unrealized investment gains/losses included in other comprehensive income			138			—			—			(11,735	)		—			—
Net fair value change included in realized gains/losses			—			—			—			13,056			—			—
Net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income			—			4,998			—			—			23,788			—
Net change included in interest credited			—			—			1,762			—			—			16,484
Purchases, sales and settlements or maturities
Purchases			—			3,655			—			—			12,345			—
Sales			(120	)		—			—			(37,670	)		—			—
Settlements or maturities			(5	)		(2,171	)		—			(10	)		(30,543	)		—
Premiums less benefits									3,737									26,841
Gross transfers into Level 3			30,199			—			—			30,199			—			—
Gross transfers out of Level 3			—			—			—			—			—			—
Ending balance September 30, 2014		$	42,144		$	170,343		$	191,760		$	42,144		$	170,343		$	191,760
Beginning balance, 2013		$	55,558		$	115,558		$	100,963		$	107,036		$	82,625		$	75,032
Total realized and unrealized investment gains/losses included in other comprehensive income			(633	)		—			—			10,496			—			—
Net fair value change included in realized gains/losses			(1	)		—			—			218			—			—
Net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income			—			11,775			—			—			42,941			—
Net change included in interest credited			—			—			11,056			—			—			39,750
Purchases, sales and settlements or maturities
Purchases			45			4,470			—			2,115			12,178			—
Sales			(138	)		—			—			(14,272	)		—			—
Settlements or maturities			—			(2,054	)		—			—			(7,995	)		—
Premiums less benefits			—			—			(730	)		—			—			(3,493	)
Gross transfers into Level 3			157			—			—			157			—			—
Gross transfers out of Level 3			(2,840	)		—			—			(53,602	)		—			—
Ending balance September 30, 2013		$	52,148		$	129,749		$	111,289		$	52,148		$	129,749		$	111,289
Within the net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income were unrealized gain/(loss) of $7,395,000 and $39,652,000 relating to assets still held at September 30, 2014 and 2013, respectively.

Deferred_Policy_Acquisition_Co

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Insurance [Abstract]	'
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	'
	10. DEFERRED POLICY ACQUISITION COSTS
	Deferred policy acquisition costs are shown below (in thousands):
								Accident			Property &
		Life			Annuity			& Health			Casualty			Total
	Beginning balance 2014	$	684,084		$	424,158		$	47,220		$	122,271		$	1,277,733
	Additions		77,261			36,413			14,949			161,978			290,601
	Amortization		(61,488	)		(58,469	)		(14,084	)		(167,414	)		(301,455	)
	Effect of change in unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities		(4,147	)		(13,028	)		—			—			(17,175	)
	Net change		11,626			(35,084	)		865			(5,436	)		(28,029	)
	Ending balance at September 30, 2014	$	695,710		$	389,074		$	48,085		$	116,835		$	1,249,704

Liability_for_Unpaid_Claims_an

Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claim Adjustment Expenses	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Insurance [Abstract]	'
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claim Adjustment Expenses	'
	11. LIABILITY FOR UNPAID CLAIMS AND CLAIM ADJUSTMENT EXPENSES
	The liability for unpaid claims and claim adjustment expenses (“claims”) for accident and health, and property and casualty insurance is included in the “Policy and contract claims” in the consolidated statements of financial position and represents the amount estimated for claims that have been reported but not settled and IBNR claims. Liability for unpaid claims are estimated based upon American National’s historical experience and actuarial assumptions that consider the effects of current developments, anticipated trends and risk management programs, reduced for anticipated salvage and subrogation. The effects of the changes are included in the consolidated results of operations in the period in which the changes occur.
	Information regarding the liability for unpaid claims is shown below (in thousands):
		Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013
	Unpaid claims balance, beginning	$	1,096,299		$	1,168,047
	Less reinsurance recoverables		215,161			256,885
	Net beginning balance		881,138			911,162
	Incurred related to
	Current		706,824			743,194
	Prior years		(29,044	)		(50,553	)
	Total incurred claims		677,780			692,641
	Paid claims related to
	Current		410,077			442,100
	Prior years		252,082			266,472
	Total paid claims		662,159			708,572
	Net balance		896,759			895,231
	Plus reinsurance recoverables		235,485			226,822
	Unpaid claims balance, ending	$	1,132,244		$	1,122,053
	The net and gross reserve calculations have shown favorable development for the last several years as a result of favorable loss emergence compared to what was implied by the loss development patterns used in the original estimation of losses in prior years. Estimates for ultimate incurred claims attributable to insured events of prior years decreased by approximately $29,044,000 during the first nine months of 2014 and $50,553,000 during the same period in 2013.

Federal_Income_Taxes

Federal Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]	'
Federal Income Taxes	'
	12. FEDERAL INCOME TAXES
	A reconciliation of the effective tax rate to the statutory federal tax rate is shown below (in thousands, except percentages):
		Three months ended September 30,												Nine months ended September 30,
		2014						2013						2014						2013
		Amount			Rate			Amount			Rate			Amount			Rate			Amount			Rate
	Income tax (benefit) on pre-tax income	$	33,171			35	%	$	42,302			35	%	$	82,308			35	%	$	93,527			35	%
	Tax-exempt investment income		(1,742	)		(1.8	)		(1,502	)		(1.2	)		(4,897	)		(2.1	)		(4,700	)		(1.8	)
	Dividend exclusion		(1,700	)		(1.8	)		(1,710	)		(1.4	)		(5,253	)		(2.2	)		(4,802	)		(1.8	)
	Miscellaneous tax credits, net		(2,658	)		(2.8	)		(1,930	)		(1.6	)		(5,873	)		(2.5	)		(5,820	)		(2.2	)
	Other items, net		(322	)		(0.3	)		(1,401	)		(1.2	)		(621	)		(0.3	)		(6,326	)		(2.3	)
		$	26,749			28.3	%	$	35,759			29.6	%	$	65,664			27.9	%	$	71,879			26.9	%
	American National made federal tax payments of $41,121,000 during the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and $37,784,000 during the nine months ended September 30, 2013.
	Management believes a sufficient level of taxable income will be achieved over time to utilize the deferred tax assets in the consolidated federal tax return; therefore, no valuation allowance was recorded as of September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013. However, if not utilized beforehand, approximately $2,260,000 of ordinary loss tax carryforwards will expire on December 31, 2034.
	The statute of limitations for the examination of federal income tax returns by the Internal Revenue Service for years 2006 to 2009 has been extended. In the opinion of management, all prior year deficiencies have been paid or adequate provisions have been made for any tax deficiencies that may be upheld. No provision for penalties was established, and no interest expense was incurred for 2014 or 2013, relating to uncertain tax positions. Management does not believe there are any uncertain tax benefits that could be recognized within the next twelve months that would decrease American National’s effective tax rate.

Accumulated_Other_Comprehensiv

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Equity [Abstract]	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)	'
	13. ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)
	The components of and changes in the accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (“AOCI”), and the related tax effects, are shown below (in thousands):
		Net Unrealized			Defined Benefit			Foreign			AOCI
		Gains/(Losses)			Pension Plan			Currency
		on Securities			Adjustments			Adjustments
	Beginning balance 2014	$	457,937		$	(43,884	)	$	(341	)	$	413,712
	Amounts reclassified from AOCI (net of tax benefit $8,906 and expense $1,159)		(16,539	)		2,152			—			(14,387	)
	Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period (net of tax expense $65,575)		121,782									121,782
	Unrealized adjustment to DAC (net of tax benefit $6,525)		(10,650	)								(10,650	)
	Unrealized (gains) losses on investments attributable to participating policyholders’ interest (net of tax benefit $2,984)		(5,542	)								(5,542	)
	Foreign currency adjustment (net of tax benefit $311)								(577	)		(577	)
	Ending balance at September 30, 2014	$	546,988		$	(41,732	)	$	(918	)	$	504,338
		Net Unrealized			Defined Benefit			Foreign			AOCI
		Gains/(Losses)			Pension Plan			Currency
		on Securities			Adjustments			Adjustments
	Beginning balance 2013	$	370,842		$	(129,003	)	$	171		$	242,010
	Amounts reclassified from AOCI (net of tax benefit $12,720 and expense $4,645)		(23,095	)		8,627			—			(14,468	)
	Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period (net of tax expense $13,277)		24,658									24,658
	Unrealized adjustment to DAC (net of tax expense $17,299)		29,344									29,344
	Unrealized (gains) losses on investments attributable to participating policyholders’ interest (net of tax expense $356)		662									662
	Foreign currency adjustment (net of tax benefit $114)								(211	)		(211	)
	Ending balance at September 30, 2013	$	402,411		$	(120,376	)	$	(40	)	$	281,995

Stockholders_Equity_and_Noncon

Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Equity [Abstract]	'
Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests	'
	14. STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY AND NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS
	American National has one class of common stock with a par value of $1.00 per share and 50,000,000 authorized shares. The amounts outstanding at the dates indicated are shown below:
		September 30,			December 31,
		2014			2013
	Common stock
	Shares issued		30,832,449			30,832,449
	Treasury shares		(3,960,507	)		(3,937,261	)
	Outstanding shares		26,871,942			26,895,188
	Restricted shares		(142,667	)		(190,667	)
	Unrestricted outstanding shares		26,729,275			26,704,521
	Stock-based compensation
	American National has one stock-based compensation plan, which allows for grants of Non-Qualified Stock Options, Stock Appreciation Rights (“SAR”), Restricted Stock (“RS”) Awards, Restricted Stock Units (“RSU”), Performance Awards, Incentive Awards or any combination thereof. This plan is administered by the American National Board Compensation Committee. The Board Compensation Committee makes incentive awards under this plan to our executives after meeting established performance objectives. All awards are subject to review by the Board of Directors, both when setting applicable performance objectives and at the payment of the awards. The number of shares available for grants under the plan cannot exceed 2,900,000, and no more than 200,000 shares may be granted to any one individual in any calendar year. Grants are made to certain officers and directors as compensation and to align their interests with those of other shareholders.
	SAR, RS and RSU information for the periods indicated is shown below:
		SAR						RS Shares					RS Units
		Shares			Weighted-			Shares			Weighted-		Units			Weighted-
					Average Grant						Average Grant					Average Grant
					Date Fair Value						Date Fair Value					Date Fair Value
	Outstanding at December 31, 2013		74,435		$	114.08			190,667		$	107.54		121,369		$	76.23
	Granted		—			—			—			—		66,383			113.49
	Exercised		(2,817	)		95.58			(48,000	)		108		(59,438	)		76.53
	Forfeited		—			—			—			—		(100	)		113.49
	Expired		(15,279	)		115.23			—			—		—			—
	Outstanding at September 30, 2014		56,339		$	114.69			142,667		$	107.39		128,214		$	95.82
		SAR			RS Shares			RS Units
	Weighted-average contractual remaining life (in years)		2			4.1			2
	Exercisable shares
	Weighted-average exercise price	$	114.69		$	107.39		$	95.82
	Weighted-average exercise price exercisable shares		114.78			N/A			N/A
	Compensation expense (credits)
	Three months ended September 30, 2014	$	(19,000	)	$	496,000		$	522,000
	Three months ended September 30, 2013		87,000			674,000			409,000
	Nine months ended September 30, 2014		(33,000	)		2,577,000			6,447,000
	Nine months ended September 30, 2013		160,000			1,703,000			8,692,000
	Fair value of liability award
	30-Sep-14	$	157,000			N/A		$	15,039,000
	31-Dec-13		376,000			N/A			15,018,000
	The SARs give the holder the right to cash compensation based on the difference between the price of a share of stock on the grant date and the price on the exercise date. The SARs vest at a rate of 20% per year for five years and expire five years after vesting.
	RS Awards entitle the participant to full dividend and voting rights. Each award has the value of one share of restricted stock and vests 10 years from the grant date. Unvested shares are restricted as to disposition, and are subject to forfeiture under certain circumstances. Compensation expense is recognized over the vesting period. The restrictions on these awards lapse after 10 years and these awards generally feature a graded vesting schedule in the case of the retirement of an award holder. Restricted stock for 350,334 shares has been granted at an exercise price of zero, of which 142,667 shares are unvested.
	Effective December 31, 2012, the settlement provision within outstanding RSU awards was modified to allow the recipient of the awards to settle the vested RSUs in either cash or American National’s common stock. This change in the settlement provision is expected to apply to all future issuance of RSU awards. Prior to the modification, vested RSUs were converted to American National’s common stock on a one-for-one basis. This modification changes the award classification from equity to liability award. At the date of modification, American National recorded a liability of $7,974,000 with a corresponding reduction in additional paid-in capital. The liability will be remeasured and adjusted for changes in the fair value each reporting period through the vesting date. RSUs generally vest after a three-year graded vesting requirement. Certain awards vest over a shorter period as a result of retirement provisions. The modification, which was applied consistently to all participants, resulted in an incremental cost of $5,310,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and added an incremental cost of $2,947,000 during the nine months ended September 30, 2013.
	Earnings per share
	Basic earnings per share were calculated using a weighted average number of shares outstanding. The Restricted Stock awards and units resulted in diluted earnings per share as follows (in thousands, except for share and per share data):
		Three months ended						Nine months ended
		September 30,						September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Weighted average shares outstanding		26,805,535			26,780,313			26,800,835			26,789,564
	Incremental shares from RS awards and RSUs		105,972			124,780			118,579			120,453
	Total shares for diluted calculations		26,911,507			26,905,093			26,919,414			26,910,017
	Net income (loss) attributable to American National	$	67,884		$	82,613		$	178,023		$	200,753
	Basic earnings per share	$	2.53		$	3.08		$	6.64		$	7.49
	Diluted earnings per share		2.52			3.07			6.61			7.46
	Statutory Capital and Surplus
	Risk Based Capital (“RBC”) requirements are measures insurance regulators use to evaluate the capital adequacy of American National Insurance Company and its insurance subsidiaries. RBC is calculated using formulas applied to certain financial balances and activities that consider, among other things, risks related to the type and quality of the invested assets, insurance risks associated with an insurer’s products and liabilities, interest rate risks and general business risks. Insurance companies that do not maintain capital and surplus at a level at least 200% of the authorized control level RBC are required to take certain actions. At September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, American National Insurance Company’s statutory capital and surplus was $2,842,984,000 and $2,667,858,000, respectively. Additionally, each of the insurance subsidiaries had statutory capital and surplus at September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, substantially above each subsidiary’s authorized control level RBC.
	American National’s insurance subsidiaries prepare statutory-basis financial statements in accordance with statutory accounting practices prescribed or permitted by the insurance department of the state of domicile, which include certain components of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ Codification of Statutory Accounting Principles (“NAIC Codification”). NAIC Codification is intended to standardize regulatory accounting and reporting to state insurance departments. However, statutory accounting practices continue to be established by individual state laws and permitted practices. Modifications by the various state insurance departments may impact the statutory capital and surplus of American National Insurance Company and its insurance subsidiaries.
	Statutory accounting differs from GAAP primarily by charging policy acquisition costs to expense as incurred, establishing future policy benefit liabilities using different actuarial assumptions, and valuing securities on a different basis. In addition, certain assets are not admitted under statutory accounting principles and are charged directly to surplus.
	One of American National’s insurance subsidiaries has been granted a permitted practice from the Missouri Department of Insurance to record as the valuation of its investment in a wholly-owned subsidiary that is the attorney-in-fact for a Texas domiciled insurer, the statutory capital and surplus of the Texas domiciled insurer. This permitted practice increases the statutory capital and surplus of both American National Insurance Company and the Missouri domiciled insurance subsidiary by $60,732,000 and $56,205,000 at September 30, 2014 and 2013, respectively. The statutory capital and surplus of both American National Insurance Company and the Missouri domiciled insurance subsidiary would have remained substantially above the company action level RBC had it not used the permitted practice.
	The statutory capital and surplus and net income (loss) of our insurance entities in accordance with statutory accounting practices are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30,			December 31,
		2014			2013
	Statutory capital and surplus
	Life insurance entities	$	1,898,939		$	1,771,999
	Property and casualty insurance entities		952,964			904,557
		Three months ended						Nine months ended
		September 30,						September 30,
	2014			2013			2014			2013
Statutory net income
Life insurance entities	$	43,447		$	59,602		$	139,564		$	159,286
Property and casualty insurance entities		22,718			20,205			44,852			26,136
Dividends
American National Insurance Company’s payment of dividends to stockholders is restricted by state laws. The restrictions require life insurance companies to maintain minimum amounts of capital and surplus, and in the absence of special approval, limit the payment of dividends to the greater of prior year statutory net income from operations on an annual, non-cumulative basis, or 10% of prior year statutory surplus. Under Texas insurance law, American National Insurance Company is permitted to pay total dividends of $266,786,000 during 2014 without prior approval of the Texas Department of Insurance. Similar restrictions on amounts that can transfer in the form of dividends, loans, or advances to American National Insurance Company apply to its insurance subsidiaries.
Noncontrolling interests
American National County Mutual Insurance Company (“County Mutual”) is a mutual insurance company that is owned by its policyholders. American National has a management agreement that effectively gives it control of County Mutual. As a result, County Mutual is included in the consolidated financial statements of American National. Policyholder interests in the financial position of County Mutual are reflected as noncontrolling interest of $6,750,000 at September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013.
American National Insurance Company and its subsidiaries exercise significant control or ownership of various joint ventures, resulting in their consolidation into American National’s consolidated financial statements. The interests of the other partners in the consolidated joint ventures are shown as noncontrolling interests of $5,529,000 and $6,007,000 at September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, respectively.

Segment_Information

Segment Information	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Segment Reporting [Abstract]	'
Segment Information	'
	15. SEGMENT INFORMATION
	Management organizes the business into five operating segments:
		•		Life—markets whole, term, universal, indexed and variable life insurance on a national basis primarily through career and multiple-line agents, independent agents and direct marketing channels.
		•		Annuity—offers fixed, indexed, and variable annuity products. These products are sold through independent agents, brokers, and financial institutions, along with multiple-line and career agents.
		•		Health—primary lines of business are Medicare Supplement, stop loss, other supplemental health products and credit disability insurance. Health products are typically distributed through independent agents and managing general underwriters.
		•		Property and Casualty—writes personal and commercial coverages and credit-related property insurance. These products are sold through multiple-line and independent agents.
		•		Corporate and Other—consists of net investment income from investments not allocated to the insurance segments and revenues from non-insurance operations.
	The accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described in Note 2 to American National’s annual report on form 10-K. All revenue and expense amounts specifically attributable to policy transactions are recorded directly to the appropriate operating segment. Revenues and expenses not specifically attributable to policy transactions are allocated to each segment as follows:
		•		Recurring income from bonds and mortgage loans is allocated based on the assets allocated to each line of business at the average yield available from these assets.
		•		Net investment income from all other assets is allocated to the insurance segments in accordance with the amount of capital allocated to each segment, with the remainder recorded in the Corporate and Other business segment.
		•		Expenses are allocated based upon various factors, including premium and commission ratios within the respective operating segments.
	The following summarizes results of operations by operating segments (in thousands):
			Three months ended September 30,				Nine months ended September 30,
			2014		2013		2014		2013
	Income (loss) from continuing operations before federal income taxes, and equity in earnings/losses of unconsolidated affiliates
	Life		$	10,794	$	9,005	$	22,076	$	23,420
	Annuity			24,366		18,631		70,415		69,633
	Health			9,304		7,170		19,579		16,164
	Property and casualty			30,088		24,634		59,790		33,198
	Corporate and other			20,223		61,424		63,305		124,807
	Total		$	94,775	$	120,864	$	235,165	$	267,222

Commitments_and_Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]	'
Commitments and Contingencies	'
	16. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
	Commitments
	American National had aggregate commitments at September 30, 2014, to purchase, expand or improve real estate, to fund fixed interest rate mortgage loans, and to purchase other invested assets of $452,166,000 of which $176,259,000 is expected to be funded in 2014. The remaining $275,907,000 will be funded in 2015 and beyond.
	American National has a $100,000,000 short-term variable rate borrowing facility containing a $55,000,000 sub-feature for the issuance of letters of credit. Borrowings under the facility are at the discretion of the lender and would be used only for funding working capital requirements. The combination of borrowings and outstanding letters of credit cannot exceed $100,000,000 at any time. As of September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, the outstanding letters of credit were $12,191,000 and $15,560,000, respectively, and there were no borrowings on this facility. This facility expires on October 30, 2015. American National expects it will be renewed on substantially equivalent terms upon expiration.
	Guarantees
	American National has guaranteed bank loans for customers of a third-party marketing operation. The bank loans are used to fund premium payments on life insurance policies issued by American National. The loans are secured by the cash values of the life insurance policies. If the customer were to default on the bank loan, American National would be obligated to pay off the loans. As the cash values of the life insurance policies always equal or exceed the balance of the loans, management does not foresee any loss on these guarantees. The total amount of the guarantees outstanding as of September 30, 2014, was approximately $206,376,000, while the total cash values of the related life insurance policies was approximately $208,418,000.
	Litigation
	American National Insurance Company and certain subsidiaries, in common with the insurance industry in general, are defendants in various lawsuits concerning alleged breaches of contracts, various employment matters, allegedly deceptive insurance sales and marketing practices, and miscellaneous other causes of action arising in the ordinary course of operations. Certain of these lawsuits include claims for compensatory and punitive damages. We provide accruals for these items to the extent we deem the losses probable and reasonably estimable. After reviewing these matters with legal counsel, based upon information presently available, management is of the opinion that the ultimate resultant liability, if any, would not have a material adverse effect on American National’s consolidated financial position, liquidity or results of operations; however, assessing the eventual outcome of litigation necessarily involves forward-looking speculation as to judgments to be made by judges, juries and appellate courts in the future. Such speculation warrants caution, as the frequency of large damage awards, which bear little or no relation to the economic damages incurred by plaintiffs in some jurisdictions, continues to create the potential for an unpredictable judgment in any given lawsuit. These lawsuits are in various stages of development, and future facts and circumstances could result in management’s changing its conclusions. It is possible that, if the defenses in these lawsuits are not successful, and the judgments are greater than management can anticipate, the resulting liability could have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, liquidity or results of operations. With respect to the existing litigation, management currently believes that the possibility of a material judgment adverse to American National is remote and no estimate of range can be made for loss contingencies that are at least reasonably possible but not accrued.

Related_Party_Transactions

Related Party Transactions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]	'
Related Party Transactions	'
	17. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS
	American National has entered into recurring transactions and agreements with certain related parties. These include mortgage loans, management contracts, agency commission contracts, marketing agreements, accident and health insurance contracts and legal services. The impact on the consolidated financial statements of the significant related party transactions is shown below (in thousands):
				Dollar Amount of Transactions				Amount due to/(from) American National
				Nine months ended September 30,				September 30,			December 31,
	Related Party	Financial Statement Line Impacted		2014		2013		2014			2013
	Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation		Mortgage loan on real estate	$	917	$	853	$	6,825		$	7,742
	Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation		Net investment income		399		463		41			47
	Greer, Herz and Adams, LLP		Other operating expenses		8,037		7,484		(404	)		(284	)
	Mortgage Loans to Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation (“Gal-Tex”): The Moody Foundation and the Libbie Shearn Moody Trust own 34.0% and 50.2%, respectively, of Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation. The Moody Foundation and the Libbie Shearn Moody Trust also own approximately 22.9% and 37.1%, respectively, of American National. American National holds a first mortgage loan originated in 1999, with an interest rate of 7.30% and final maturity date of April 1, 2019 issued to Gal-Tex, which is collateralized by a hotel property in San Antonio, Texas. This loan is current as to principal and interest payments.
	Transactions with Greer, Herz & Adams, L.L.P.: Irwin M. Herz, Jr. is an American National advisory director and a Partner with Greer, Herz Adams, L.L.P., which serves as American National’s General Counsel.

Summary_of_Significant_Account1

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Practices (Policies)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]	'
Basis of Accounting	'
	The consolidated financial statements and notes thereto have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and are reported in U.S. currency.
Consolidation Policy	'
	American National consolidates entities that are wholly-owned and those in which American National owns less than 100% but controls, as well as variable interest entities in which American National is the primary beneficiary. Intercompany balances and transactions with consolidated entities have been eliminated. Investments in unconsolidated affiliates are accounted for using the equity method of accounting.
Reclassification Policy	'
	Certain amounts in prior years have been reclassified to conform to current year presentation.
Use of Estimates	'
	The preparation of the consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires the use of estimates and assumptions that affect the reported consolidated financial statement balances. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Investments_in_Securities_Tabl

Investments in Securities (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Investments, Debt and Equity Securities [Abstract]	'
Investments in Securities	'
	The cost or amortized cost and fair value of investments in securities are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014
		Cost or			Gross			Gross			Fair Value
		Amortized Cost			Unrealized			Unrealized
					Gains			(Losses)
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. states and political subdivisions	$	327,022		$	25,144		$	(67	)	$	352,099
	Foreign governments		29,122			1,641			—			30,763
	Corporate debt securities		7,636,327			453,220			(40,292	)		8,049,255
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		353,444			22,178			(1,921	)		373,701
	Collateralized debt securities		2,236			223			—			2,459
	Other debt securities		16,580			1,396			—			17,976
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		8,364,731			503,802			(42,280	)		8,826,253
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. treasury and government		24,073			783			—			24,856
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		746,801			33,661			(2,940	)		777,522
	Foreign governments		5,000			1,900			—			6,900
	Corporate debt securities		3,866,518			206,396			(16,342	)		4,056,572
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		45,644			2,112			(754	)		47,002
	Collateralized debt securities		12,199			1,175			(8	)		13,366
	Total bonds available-for-sale		4,700,235			246,027			(20,044	)		4,926,218
	Equity securities
	Common stock		722,015			734,419			(3,791	)		1,452,643
	Preferred stock		23,718			18,123			(13	)		41,828
	Total equity securities		745,733			752,542			(3,804	)		1,494,471
	Total investments in securities	$	13,810,699		$	1,502,371		$	(66,128	)	$	15,246,942
		December 31, 2013
		Cost or			Gross			Gross			Fair Value
		Amortized Cost			Unrealized			Unrealized
					Gains			(Losses)
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. treasury and government	$	1,738		$	6		$	—		$	1,744
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		346,240			16,945			(529	)		362,656
	Foreign governments		29,099			2,505			—			31,604
	Corporate debt securities		7,700,559			410,232			(116,900	)		7,993,891
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		400,619			20,711			(2,647	)		418,683
	Collateralized debt securities		2,366			225			—			2,591
	Other debt securities		10,726			1,173			—			11,899
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		8,491,347			451,797			(120,076	)		8,823,068
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. treasury and government		21,751			725			—			22,476
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		630,199			22,118			(13,756	)		638,561
	Foreign governments		5,000			1,649			—			6,649
	Corporate debt securities		3,689,349			171,717			(54,033	)		3,807,033
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		61,135			2,940			(1,068	)		63,007
	Commercial mortgage-backed securities		18,223			11,037			—			29,260
	Collateralized debt securities		13,884			1,320			(18	)		15,186
	Other debt securities		16,850			679			(28	)		17,501
	Total bonds available-for-sale		4,456,391			212,185			(68,903	)		4,599,673
	Equity securities
	Common stock		717,390			653,967			(2,362	)		1,368,995
	Preferred stock		23,690			18,301			(378	)		41,613
	Total equity securities		741,080			672,268			(2,740	)		1,410,608
	Total investments in securities	$	13,688,818		$	1,336,250		$	(191,719	)	$	14,833,349
Maturities of Investments	'
	The amortized costs and fair values, by contractual maturity, of fixed maturity securities are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014
		Bonds Held-to-Maturity						Bonds Available-for-Sale
		Amortized Cost			Fair Value			Amortized Cost			Fair Value
	Due in one year or less	$	902,160		$	921,894		$	345,538		$	351,549
	Due after one year through five years		2,046,277			2,257,421			855,878			932,247
	Due after five years through ten years		4,988,483			5,196,155			3,029,503			3,154,290
	Due after ten years		421,961			445,711			464,316			483,132
	Without single maturity date		5,850			5,072			5,000			5,000
	Total	$	8,364,731		$	8,826,253		$	4,700,235		$	4,926,218
Proceeds from Available for Sale Securities and Realized Gain Loss	'
	Proceeds from sales of available-for-sale securities, with the related gross realized gains and losses, are shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30 ,						Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Proceeds from sales of available-for-sale securities	$	2,671		$	33,390		$	139,137		$	189,438
	Gross realized gains		228			10,349			24,994			33,699
	Gross realized losses		—			(97	)		(2,123	)		(623	)
Change in Net Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Available-for-Sale Securities	'
	The components of the change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities are shown below (in thousands):
		Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013
	Bonds available-for-sale	$	82,701		$	(163,493	)
	Equity securities		79,211			165,613
	Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities during the year		161,912			2,120
	Adjustments for
	Deferred policy acquisition costs		(17,175	)		46,643
	Participating policyholders’ interest		(8,526	)		1,018
	Deferred federal income tax benefit (expense)		(47,160	)		(18,212	)
	Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities, net of tax	$	89,051		$	31,569
Gross Unrealized Losses and Fair Value of Investment Securities	'
	The gross unrealized losses and fair value of the investment securities, aggregated by investment category and length of time that individual securities have been in a continuous unrealized loss position, are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014
		Less than 12 months						12 Months or more						Total
		Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair
		(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. states and political subdivisions	$	(2	)	$	588		$	(65	)	$	2,455		$	(67	)	$	3,043
	Corporate debt securities		(7,727	)		511,249			(32,565	)		799,719			(40,292	)		1,310,968
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		(225	)		18,589			(1,696	)		31,203			(1,921	)		49,792
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		(7,954	)		530,426			(34,326	)		833,377			(42,280	)		1,363,803
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. Treasury & other U.S. Gov corporations and agencies		—			476			—			—			—			476
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		(449	)		37,887			(2,491	)		79,485			(2,940	)		117,372
	Corporate debt securities		(5,167	)		372,578			(11,175	)		338,870			(16,342	)		711,448
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		(147	)		10,908			(607	)		13,835			(754	)		24,743
	Collateralized debt securities		(1	)		117			(7	)		361			(8	)		478
	Other Debt Securities		—			—			—			—			—			—
	Total bonds available-for-sale		(5,764	)		421,966			(14,280	)		432,551			(20,044	)		854,517
	Equity securities
	Common stock		(3,791	)		37,132			—			—			(3,791	)		37,132
	Preferred stock		(13	)		1,874			—			—			(13	)		1,874
	Total equity securities		(3,804	)		39,006			—			—			(3,804	)		39,006
	Total	$	(17,522	)	$	991,398		$	(48,606	)	$	1,265,928		$	(66,128	)	$	2,257,326
		December 31, 2013
		Less than 12 months						12 Months or more						Total
		Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair			Unrealized			Fair
		(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value			(Losses)			Value
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. states and political subdivisions	$	(529	)	$	22,430		$	—		$	—		$	(529	)	$	22,430
	Corporate debt securities		(104,308	)		1,916,758			(12,592	)		109,603			(116,900	)		2,026,361
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		(1,718	)		31,715			(929	)		13,514			(2,647	)		45,229
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		(106,555	)		1,970,903			(13,521	)		123,117			(120,076	)		2,094,020
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. Treasury & other U.S. Gov corporations and agencies		—			725			—			—			—			725
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		(13,271	)		168,093			(485	)		2,905			(13,756	)		170,998
	Corporate debt securities		(49,198	)		1,083,677			(4,835	)		92,004			(54,033	)		1,175,681
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		(978	)		16,835			(90	)		1,872			(1,068	)		18,707
	Collateralized debt securities		(3	)		205			(15	)		587			(18	)		792
	Other debt securities		(28	)		10,027			—			—			(28	)		10,027
	Total bonds available-for-sale		(63,478	)		1,279,562			(5,425	)		97,368			(68,903	)		1,376,930
	Equity securities
	Common stock		(2,362	)		29,978			—			—			(2,362	)		29,978
	Preferred stock		(378	)		6,123			—			—			(378	)		6,123
	Total equity securities		(2,740	)		36,101			—			—			(2,740	)		36,101
	Total	$	(172,773	)	$	3,286,566		$	(18,946	)	$	220,485		$	(191,719	)	$	3,507,051
Bond by Credit Quality Rating Distribution	'
	Bonds distributed by credit quality rating, using both S&P and Moody’s ratings, are shown below:
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	AAA		4.9	%		4.9	%
	AA		12.5			11.3
	A		40.1			40.7
	BBB		39			39.2
	BB and below		3.5			3.9
	Total		100	%		100	%
Equity Securities by Market Sector Distribution	'
	Equity securities by market sector distribution are shown below:
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	Consumer goods		19.2	%		19.8	%
	Energy and utilities		14.7			15
	Financials		18.8			19.3
	Healthcare		13.8			12.7
	Industrials		8.4			9
	Information technology		16.3			15.7
	Other		8.8			8.5
	Total		100	%		100	%

Mortgage_Loans_Tables

Mortgage Loans (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Receivables [Abstract]	'
Mortgage Loans by Property Type and Geographic Distribution	'
	Mortgage loans by property-type and geographic distribution are as follows:
		September 30, 2014				December 31, 2013
	Hotel and motel		11.3	%			10	%
	Industrial		21.2				24.9
	Office		35.6				34
	Retail		18.2				19.6
	Other		13.7				11.5
	Total		100	%			100	%
		September 30, 2014				December 31, 2013
	East North Central		19.5	%			19.3	%
	East South Central		5				6.8
	Mountain		10.3				10
	Pacific		12.3				12.3
	South Atlantic		21				19.6
	West South Central		25.1				26.4
	Other		6.8				5.6
	Total		100	%			100
Age Analysis of Past Due Commercial Mortgage Loans	'
	The age analysis of past due commercial mortgage loans is shown below (in thousands):
		30-59 Days				60-89 Days				Greater Than				Total Past				Current				Total
		Past Due				Past Due				90 Days				Due								Mortgage Loans
	September 30, 2014
	Industrial	$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	705,801			$	705,801
	Office		—				—				—				—				1,191,525				1,191,525
	Retail		—				—				—				—				610,335				610,335
	Other		—				—				—				—				828,496				828,496
	Total	$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	3,336,157				3,336,157
	Allowance for loan losses																						17,605
	Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance																					$	3,318,552
	December 31, 2013
	Industrial	$	—			$	—			$	2,739			$	2,739			$	821,741			$	824,480
	Office		—				—				—				—				1,124,818				1,124,818
	Retail		—				—				—				—				651,236				651,236
	Other		—				—				—				—				710,889				710,889
	Total	$	—			$	—			$	2,739			$	2,739			$	3,308,684				3,311,423
	Allowance for loan losses																						12,181
	Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance																					$	3,299,242
Commercial Mortgage Loans Placed on Nonaccrual Status	'
	Commercial mortgage loans placed on nonaccrual status are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30,				December 31,
		2014				2013
	Industrial	$	—			$	2,739
Change in Allowance for Credit Losses in Commercial Mortgage Loans	'
	The change in allowance for credit losses in commercial mortgage loans is shown below (in thousands):
		Nine months ended September 30, 2014
		Collectively				Individually
		Evaluated				Evaluated
		for Impairment				for Impairment
	Beginning balance, 2014	$	11,688			$	493
	Change Due to Factor Development		(441	)			—
	Change in allowance		775				5,090
	Ending balance, 2014	$	12,022			$	5,583
Loans Individually Evaluated for Impairment With and Without Allowance	'
	Loans individually evaluated for impairment with and without an allowance are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014								September 30, 2013
		Average				Interest				Average				Interest
		Recorded				Income				Recorded				Income
		Investment				Recognized				Investment				Recognized
	Three months ended
	With an allowance recorded
	Office	$	27,564			$	547			$	23,159			$	393
	Retail		—				—				493				—
	Total	$	27,564			$	547			$	23,652			$	393
	Without an allowance recorded
	Office	$	26,941			$	431			$	6,432			$	110
	Industrial		2,702				36				—				—
	Retail		851				11				—				—
	Total	$	30,494			$	478			$	6,432			$	110
	Nine months ended
	With an allowance recorded
	Office	$	29,421			$	1,663			$	23,234			$	1,192
	Retail		—				—				493				—
	Total	$	29,421			$	1,663			$	23,727			$	1,192
	Without an allowance recorded
	Office	$	27,019			$	1,298			$	6,439			$	331
	Industrial		2,721				110				—				—
	Retail		1,149				16				—				—
	Total	$	30,889			$	1,424			$	6,439			$	331
		30-Sep-14								31-Dec-13
		Recorded				Unpaid				Recorded				Unpaid
		Investment				Principal				Investment				Principal
						Balance								Balance
	With an allowance recorded
	Office	$	26,662			$	27,947			$	—			$	—
	Retail		—				—				493				493
	Total	$	26,662			$	27,947			$	493			$	493
	Without an allowance recorded
	Office	$	26,941			$	26,941			$	12,377			$	12,377
	Industrial		2,702				2,702				2,739				2,739
	Retail		719				719				1,579				1,579
	Total	$	30,362			$	30,362			$	16,695			$	16,695
Number of Mortgage Loans and Recorded Investment	'
	The number of mortgage loans and recorded investments in troubled debt restructuring are as follows (in thousands except for number of contracts):
		Nine months ended September 30,
		2014										2013
		Number of		Recorded				Recorded				Number of				Recorded				Recorded
				investment pre-				investment post				contracts				investment pre-				investment post
		contracts		modification				modification								modification				modification
	Office	3		$	34,400			$	30,996				1			$	6,432			$	6,432

Investment_Real_Estate_Tables

Investment Real Estate (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Real Estate [Abstract]	'
Investment Real Estate by Property-Type and Geographic Distribution	'
	Investment real estate by property-type and geographic distribution are as follows:
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	Industrial		13.8	%		12.3	%
	Office		20.7			23.1
	Retail		46.4			43.4
	Other		19.1			21.2
	Total		100	%		100	%
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	East North Central		4.8	%		7.8	%
	East South Central		4.8			5.4
	Mountain		6.5			6
	Pacific		7.4			5.5
	South Atlantic		12.7			13.4
	West South Central		57.1			59
	Other		6.7			2.9
	Total		100	%		100	%
Assets and Liabilities Related to VIEs	'
	The assets and liabilities relating to the VIEs included in the consolidated financial statements are as follows (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014			December 31, 2013
	Investment real estate	$	138,994		$	123,624
	Cash and cash equivalents		1,761			2,154
	Accrued investment income		412			2,197
	Other receivables		7,986			8,488
	Other assets		5,686			6,016
	Total assets of consolidated VIEs	$	154,839		$	142,479
	Notes payable	$	109,349		$	113,849
	Other liabilities		4,595			6,680
	Total liabilities of consolidated VIEs	$	113,944		$	120,529
Carrying Amount and Maximum Exposure to Loss Related to VIEs	'
	The following table presents the carrying amount and maximum exposure to loss relating to unconsolidated VIEs (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014						December 31, 2013
		Carrying			Maximum			Carrying		Maximum
		Amount			Exposure			Amount		Exposure
					to Loss					to Loss
	Investment in unconsolidated affiliates	$	195,794		$	195,794		$	195,794	$	195,794
	Mortgage loans		153,626			153,626			101,648		101,648
	Accrued investment income		617			617			454		454

Derivative_Instruments_Tables

Derivative Instruments (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities Disclosure [Abstract]	'
Schedule of Derivative Instruments Reported in Financial Position	'
	The detail of derivative instruments is shown below (in thousands, except the number of instruments):
			September 30, 2014									December 31, 2013
	Derivatives Not Designated	Location in the	Number of			Notional			Estimated			Number of			Notional		Estimated
	as Hedging Instruments	Consolidated Statements of Financial Position	Instruments			Amounts			Fair Value			Instruments			Amounts		Fair Value
	Equity-indexed options	Other invested assets		416		$	1,034,600		$	170,343			394		$	951,400	$	164,753
	Equity-indexed embedded derivative	Policyholders’ account balances		39,723			957,600			191,760			33,579			819,200		148,435
Schedule of Derivative Instruments Reported in Statements of Operations	'
	Derivatives Not Designated	Location in the	Gains (Losses) Recognized in Income on Derivatives
	as Hedging Instruments	Consolidated Statements of
			Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		Operations	2014			2013			2014			2013
	Equity-indexed options	Net investment income	$	6,562		$	13,260		$	29,011		$	48,019
	Equity-indexed embedded derivative	Interest credited to policyholders’ account balances		(1,762	)		(11,056	)		(16,484	)		(39,750	)

Net_Investment_Income_and_Real1

Net Investment Income and Realized Investment Gains (Losses) (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Text Block [Abstract]	'
Summary of Net Investment Income	'
	Net investment income is shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Bonds	$	148,715		$	157,888		$	450,110		$	479,296
	Equity securities		8,146			7,417			26,488			22,653
	Mortgage loans		51,652			55,629			159,010			163,497
	Real estate		14,245			11,297			11,347			10,228
	Options		6,562			13,260			29,011			48,019
	Other invested assets		7,169			8,845			21,638			28,795
	Total	$	236,489		$	254,336		$	697,604		$	752,488
Summary of Realized Investment Gains (Losses)	'
	Realized investment gains (losses) are shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Bonds	$	1,925		$	9,907		$	21,837		$	16,826
	Equity securities		229			10,149			10,293			30,668
	Mortgage loans		(1,551	)		(1,561	)		(5,424	)		(1,172	)
	Real estate		(1,242	)		25,311			1,787			61,257
	Other invested assets		(10	)		(11	)		(945	)		(106	)
	Total	$	(649	)	$	43,795		$	27,548		$	107,473
Summary of Other than Temporary Impairment Losses	'
	The other-than-temporary-impairment losses are shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Bonds	$	—		$	—		$	(41	)	$	—
	Equity securities		(1,608	)		(312	)		(3,004	)		(3,503	)
	Total	$	(1,608	)	$	(312	)	$	(3,045	)	$	(3,503	)

Fair_Value_of_Financial_Instru1

Fair Value of Financial Instruments (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]	'
Carrying Amount and Fair Value of Financial Instruments	'
	The carrying amount and fair value of financial instruments are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30, 2014						December 31, 2013
		Carrying						Carrying
		Amount			Fair Value			Amount			Fair Value
	Financial assets
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity	$	8,364,731		$	8,826,253		$	8,491,347		$	8,823,068
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale		4,926,218			4,926,218			4,599,673			4,599,673
	Equity securities		1,494,471			1,494,471			1,410,608			1,410,608
	Equity-indexed options		170,343			170,343			164,753			164,753
	Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance		3,318,552			3,515,463			3,299,242			3,470,663
	Policy loans		404,705			404,705			397,407			397,407
	Short-term investments		346,343			346,343			495,386			495,386
	Separate account assets		992,615			992,615			970,954			970,954
	Total financial assets	$	20,017,978		$	20,676,411		$	19,829,370		$	20,332,512
	Financial liabilities
	Investment contracts	$	9,039,356		$	9,039,356		$	9,423,122		$	9,423,122
	Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts		191,760			191,760			148,435			148,435
	Notes payable		109,349			109,349			113,849			113,849
	Separate account liabilities		992,615			992,615			970,954			970,954
	Total financial liabilities	$	10,333,080		$	10,333,080		$	10,656,360		$	10,656,360
Quantitative Disclosures Regarding Fair Value Hierarchy Measurements	'
	The fair value hierarchy measurements of the financial instruments are shown below (in thousands):
		Fair Value Measurement as of September 30, 2014
		Total			Level 1			Level 2			Level 3
		Fair Value
	Financial assets
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. states and political subdivisions	$	352,099		$	—		$	352,099		$	—
	Foreign governments		30,763			—			30,763			—
	Corporate debt securities		8,049,255			—			7,998,901			50,354
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		373,701			—			372,724			977
	Collateralized debt securities		2,459			—			—			2,459
	Other debt securities		17,976			—			13,113			4,863
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		8,826,253			—			8,767,600			58,653
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. treasury and government		24,856			—			24,856			—
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		777,522			—			775,012			2,510
	Foreign governments		6,900			—			6,900			—
	Corporate debt securities		4,056,572			—			4,021,030			35,542
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		47,002			—			45,076			1,926
	Collateralized debt securities		13,366			—			11,200			2,166
	Total bonds available-for-sale		4,926,218			—			4,884,074			42,144
	Equity securities
	Common stock		1,452,643			1,452,643			—			—
	Preferred stock		41,828			41,828			—			—
	Total equity securities		1,494,471			1,494,471			—			—
	Options		170,343			—			—			170,343
	Mortgage loans on real estate		3,515,463			—			3,515,463			—
	Policy loans		404,705			—			—			404,705
	Short-term investments		346,343			—			346,343			—
	Separate account assets		992,615			—			992,615			—
	Total financial assets	$	20,676,411		$	1,494,471		$	18,506,095		$	675,845
	Financial liabilities
	Investment contracts	$	9,039,356		$	—		$	—		$	9,039,356
	Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts		191,760			—			—			191,760
	Notes payable		109,349			—			—			109,349
	Separate account liabilities		992,615			—			992,615			—
	Total financial liabilities	$	10,333,080		$	—		$	992,615		$	9,340,465
		Fair Value Measurement as of December 31, 2013
		Total			Level 1			Level 2			Level 3
		Fair Value
	Financial assets
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds held-to-maturity
	U.S. treasury and government	$	1,744		$	—		$	1,744		$	—
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		362,656			—			362,656			—
	Foreign governments		31,604			—			31,604			—
	Corporate debt securities		7,993,891			—			7,950,418			43,473
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		418,683			—			417,688			995
	Collateralized debt securities		2,591			—			—			2,591
	Other debt securities		11,899			—			11,899			—
	Total bonds held-to-maturity		8,823,068			—			8,776,009			47,059
	Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale
	U.S. treasury and government		22,476			—			22,476			—
	U.S. states and political subdivisions		638,561			—			636,041			2,520
	Foreign governments		6,649			—			6,649			—
	Corporate debt securities		3,807,033			—			3,794,809			12,224
	Residential mortgage-backed securities		63,007			—			60,841			2,166
	Commercial mortgage-backed securities		29,260			—			—			29,260
	Collateralized debt securities		15,186			—			13,052			2,134
	Other debt securities		17,501			—			17,501			—
	Total bonds available-for-sale		4,599,673			—			4,551,369			48,304
	Equity securities
	Common stock		1,368,995			1,368,995			—			—
	Preferred stock		41,613			41,613			—			—
Total equity securities		1,410,608			1,410,608			—			—
Options		164,753			—			—			164,753
Mortgage loans on real estate		3,470,663			—			3,470,663			—
Policy loans		397,407			—			—			397,407
Short-term investments		495,386			—			495,386			—
Separate account assets		970,954			—			970,954			—
Total financial assets	$	20,332,512		$	1,410,608		$	18,264,381		$	657,523
Financial liabilities
Investment contracts	$	9,423,122		$	—		$	—		$	9,423,122
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts		148,435			—			—			148,435
Notes payable		113,849			—			—			113,849
Separate account liabilities		970,954			—			970,954			—
Total financial liabilities	$	10,656,360		$	—		$	970,954		$	9,685,406
Financial Instruments Measured at Fair Value on Recurring Basis Using (Level 3) Inputs	'
	For financial instruments measured at fair value on a recurring basis using Level 3 inputs during the period, a reconciliation of the beginning and ending balances is shown below (in thousands):
		Level 3
		Three months ended September 30,									Nine months ended September 30,
		Assets						Liability			Assets						Liability
					Equity-									Equity-
		Investment			Indexed			Embedded			Investment			Indexed			Embedded
		Securities			Options			Derivative			Securities			Options			Derivative
	Beginning balance, 2014	$	11,932		$	163,861		$	186,261		$	48,304		$	164,753		$	148,435
	Total realized and unrealized investment gains/losses included in other comprehensive income		138			—			—			(11,735	)		—			—
	Net fair value change included in realized gains/losses		—			—			—			13,056			—			—
	Net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income		—			4,998			—			—			23,788			—
	Net change included in interest credited		—			—			1,762			—			—			16,484
	Purchases, sales and settlements or maturities
	Purchases		—			3,655			—			—			12,345			—
	Sales		(120	)		—			—			(37,670	)		—			—
	Settlements or maturities		(5	)		(2,171	)		—			(10	)		(30,543	)		—
	Premiums less benefits								3,737									26,841
	Gross transfers into Level 3		30,199			—			—			30,199			—			—
	Gross transfers out of Level 3		—			—			—			—			—			—
	Ending balance September 30, 2014	$	42,144		$	170,343		$	191,760		$	42,144		$	170,343		$	191,760
	Beginning balance, 2013	$	55,558		$	115,558		$	100,963		$	107,036		$	82,625		$	75,032
	Total realized and unrealized investment gains/losses included in other comprehensive income		(633	)		—			—			10,496			—			—
	Net fair value change included in realized gains/losses		(1	)		—			—			218			—			—
	Net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income		—			11,775			—			—			42,941			—
	Net change included in interest credited		—			—			11,056			—			—			39,750
	Purchases, sales and settlements or maturities
	Purchases		45			4,470			—			2,115			12,178			—
	Sales		(138	)		—			—			(14,272	)		—			—
	Settlements or maturities		—			(2,054	)		—			—			(7,995	)		—
	Premiums less benefits		—			—			(730	)		—			—			(3,493	)
	Gross transfers into Level 3		157			—			—			157			—			—
	Gross transfers out of Level 3		(2,840	)		—			—			(53,602	)		—			—
	Ending balance September 30, 2013	$	52,148		$	129,749		$	111,289		$	52,148		$	129,749		$	111,289

Deferred_Policy_Acquisition_Co1

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Insurance [Abstract]	'
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	'
	Deferred policy acquisition costs are shown below (in thousands):
								Accident			Property &
		Life			Annuity			& Health			Casualty			Total
	Beginning balance 2014	$	684,084		$	424,158		$	47,220		$	122,271		$	1,277,733
	Additions		77,261			36,413			14,949			161,978			290,601
	Amortization		(61,488	)		(58,469	)		(14,084	)		(167,414	)		(301,455	)
	Effect of change in unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities		(4,147	)		(13,028	)		—			—			(17,175	)
	Net change		11,626			(35,084	)		865			(5,436	)		(28,029	)
	Ending balance at September 30, 2014	$	695,710		$	389,074		$	48,085		$	116,835		$	1,249,704

Liability_for_Unpaid_Claims_an1

Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claim Adjustment Expenses (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Insurance [Abstract]	'
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claim Adjustment Expenses	'
	Information regarding the liability for unpaid claims is shown below (in thousands):
		Nine months ended September 30,
		2014			2013
	Unpaid claims balance, beginning	$	1,096,299		$	1,168,047
	Less reinsurance recoverables		215,161			256,885
	Net beginning balance		881,138			911,162
	Incurred related to
	Current		706,824			743,194
	Prior years		(29,044	)		(50,553	)
	Total incurred claims		677,780			692,641
	Paid claims related to
	Current		410,077			442,100
	Prior years		252,082			266,472
	Total paid claims		662,159			708,572
	Net balance		896,759			895,231
	Plus reinsurance recoverables		235,485			226,822
	Unpaid claims balance, ending	$	1,132,244		$	1,122,053

Federal_Income_Taxes_Tables

Federal Income Taxes (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]	'
Effective Income Tax Reconciliation	'
	A reconciliation of the effective tax rate to the statutory federal tax rate is shown below (in thousands, except percentages):
		Three months ended September 30,												Nine months ended September 30,
		2014						2013						2014						2013
		Amount			Rate			Amount			Rate			Amount			Rate			Amount			Rate
	Income tax (benefit) on pre-tax income	$	33,171			35	%	$	42,302			35	%	$	82,308			35	%	$	93,527			35	%
	Tax-exempt investment income		(1,742	)		(1.8	)		(1,502	)		(1.2	)		(4,897	)		(2.1	)		(4,700	)		(1.8	)
	Dividend exclusion		(1,700	)		(1.8	)		(1,710	)		(1.4	)		(5,253	)		(2.2	)		(4,802	)		(1.8	)
	Miscellaneous tax credits, net		(2,658	)		(2.8	)		(1,930	)		(1.6	)		(5,873	)		(2.5	)		(5,820	)		(2.2	)
	Other items, net		(322	)		(0.3	)		(1,401	)		(1.2	)		(621	)		(0.3	)		(6,326	)		(2.3	)
		$	26,749			28.3	%	$	35,759			29.6	%	$	65,664			27.9	%	$	71,879			26.9	%

Accumulated_Other_Comprehensiv1

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Equity [Abstract]	'
Components of Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)	'
	The components of and changes in the accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (“AOCI”), and the related tax effects, are shown below (in thousands):
		Net Unrealized			Defined Benefit			Foreign			AOCI
		Gains/(Losses)			Pension Plan			Currency
		on Securities			Adjustments			Adjustments
	Beginning balance 2014	$	457,937		$	(43,884	)	$	(341	)	$	413,712
	Amounts reclassified from AOCI (net of tax benefit $8,906 and expense $1,159)		(16,539	)		2,152			—			(14,387	)
	Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period (net of tax expense $65,575)		121,782									121,782
	Unrealized adjustment to DAC (net of tax benefit $6,525)		(10,650	)								(10,650	)
	Unrealized (gains) losses on investments attributable to participating policyholders’ interest (net of tax benefit $2,984)		(5,542	)								(5,542	)
	Foreign currency adjustment (net of tax benefit $311)								(577	)		(577	)
	Ending balance at September 30, 2014	$	546,988		$	(41,732	)	$	(918	)	$	504,338
		Net Unrealized			Defined Benefit			Foreign			AOCI
		Gains/(Losses)			Pension Plan			Currency
		on Securities			Adjustments			Adjustments
	Beginning balance 2013	$	370,842		$	(129,003	)	$	171		$	242,010
	Amounts reclassified from AOCI (net of tax benefit $12,720 and expense $4,645)		(23,095	)		8,627			—			(14,468	)
	Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period (net of tax expense $13,277)		24,658									24,658
	Unrealized adjustment to DAC (net of tax expense $17,299)		29,344									29,344
	Unrealized (gains) losses on investments attributable to participating policyholders’ interest (net of tax expense $356)		662									662
	Foreign currency adjustment (net of tax benefit $114)								(211	)		(211	)
	Ending balance at September 30, 2013	$	402,411		$	(120,376	)	$	(40	)	$	281,995

Stockholders_Equity_and_Noncon1

Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Equity [Abstract]	'
Common Stock, Amounts Outstanding	'
	The amounts outstanding at the dates indicated are shown below:
		September 30,			December 31,
		2014			2013
	Common stock
	Shares issued		30,832,449			30,832,449
	Treasury shares		(3,960,507	)		(3,937,261	)
	Outstanding shares		26,871,942			26,895,188
	Restricted shares		(142,667	)		(190,667	)
	Unrestricted outstanding shares		26,729,275			26,704,521
Stock-Based Compensation Information	'
	SAR, RS and RSU information for the periods indicated is shown below:
		SAR						RS Shares					RS Units
		Shares			Weighted-			Shares			Weighted-		Units			Weighted-
					Average Grant						Average Grant					Average Grant
					Date Fair Value						Date Fair Value					Date Fair Value
	Outstanding at December 31, 2013		74,435		$	114.08			190,667		$	107.54		121,369		$	76.23
	Granted		—			—			—			—		66,383			113.49
	Exercised		(2,817	)		95.58			(48,000	)		108		(59,438	)		76.53
	Forfeited		—			—			—			—		(100	)		113.49
	Expired		(15,279	)		115.23			—			—		—			—
	Outstanding at September 30, 2014		56,339		$	114.69			142,667		$	107.39		128,214		$	95.82
		SAR			RS Shares			RS Units
	Weighted-average contractual remaining life (in years)		2			4.1			2
	Exercisable shares
	Weighted-average exercise price	$	114.69		$	107.39		$	95.82
	Weighted-average exercise price exercisable shares		114.78			N/A			N/A
	Compensation expense (credits)
	Three months ended September 30, 2014	$	(19,000	)	$	496,000		$	522,000
	Three months ended September 30, 2013		87,000			674,000			409,000
	Nine months ended September 30, 2014		(33,000	)		2,577,000			6,447,000
	Nine months ended September 30, 2013		160,000			1,703,000			8,692,000
	Fair value of liability award
	30-Sep-14	$	157,000			N/A		$	15,039,000
	31-Dec-13		376,000			N/A			15,018,000
Summary of Basic and Diluted Earnings Per Share	'
	The Restricted Stock awards and units resulted in diluted earnings per share as follows (in thousands, except for share and per share data):
		Three months ended						Nine months ended
		September 30,						September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Weighted average shares outstanding		26,805,535			26,780,313			26,800,835			26,789,564
	Incremental shares from RS awards and RSUs		105,972			124,780			118,579			120,453
	Total shares for diluted calculations		26,911,507			26,905,093			26,919,414			26,910,017
	Net income (loss) attributable to American National	$	67,884		$	82,613		$	178,023		$	200,753
	Basic earnings per share	$	2.53		$	3.08		$	6.64		$	7.49
	Diluted earnings per share		2.52			3.07			6.61			7.46
Statutory Capital and Surplus and Net Income (Loss) of Insurance Entities in Accordance with Statutory Accounting Practices	'
	The statutory capital and surplus and net income (loss) of our insurance entities in accordance with statutory accounting practices are shown below (in thousands):
		September 30,			December 31,
		2014			2013
	Statutory capital and surplus
	Life insurance entities	$	1,898,939		$	1,771,999
	Property and casualty insurance entities		952,964			904,557
		Three months ended						Nine months ended
		September 30,						September 30,
		2014			2013			2014			2013
	Statutory net income
	Life insurance entities	$	43,447		$	59,602		$	139,564		$	159,286
	Property and casualty insurance entities		22,718			20,205			44,852			26,136

Segment_Information_Tables

Segment Information (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Segment Reporting [Abstract]	'
Summary of Results of Operations by Operating Segments	'
	The following summarizes results of operations by operating segments (in thousands):
		Three months ended September 30,				Nine months ended September 30,
		2014		2013		2014		2013
	Income (loss) from continuing operations before federal income taxes, and equity in earnings/losses of unconsolidated affiliates
	Life	$	10,794	$	9,005	$	22,076	$	23,420
	Annuity		24,366		18,631		70,415		69,633
	Health		9,304		7,170		19,579		16,164
	Property and casualty		30,088		24,634		59,790		33,198
	Corporate and other		20,223		61,424		63,305		124,807
	Total	$	94,775	$	120,864	$	235,165	$	267,222

Related_Party_Transactions_Tab

Related Party Transactions (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]	'
Related Party Transactions	'
	The impact on the consolidated financial statements of the significant related party transactions is shown below (in thousands):
				Dollar Amount of Transactions				Amount due to/(from) American National
				Nine months ended September 30,				September 30,			December 31,
	Related Party	Financial Statement Line Impacted		2014		2013		2014			2013
	Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation		Mortgage loan on real estate	$	917	$	853	$	6,825		$	7,742
	Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation		Net investment income		399		463		41			47
	Greer, Herz and Adams, LLP		Other operating expenses		8,037		7,484		(404	)		(284	)

Nature_of_Operations_Additiona

Nature of Operations - Additional Information (Detail)	Sep. 30, 2014
	State
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]	'
Number of states	50

Summary_of_Significant_Account2

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Practices - Additional Information (Detail)	Sep. 30, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]	'
Entity ownership percentage	100.00%

Investments_in_Securities_Inve

Investments in Securities - Investments in Securities (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	$8,364,731	$8,491,347
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	503,802	451,797
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-42,280	-120,076
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	8,826,253	8,823,068
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	4,700,235	4,456,391
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	246,027	212,185
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-20,044	-68,903
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	4,926,218	4,599,673
Available-for-sale equity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	745,733	741,080
Available-for-sale equity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	752,542	672,268
Available-for-sale equity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-3,804	-2,740
Available-for-sale equity securities, Fair Value	1,494,471	1,410,608
Investments in securities, Cost or Amortized cost	13,810,699	13,688,818
Investments in securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,502,371	1,336,250
Investments in securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-66,128	-191,719
Investments in securities, Fair Value	15,246,942	14,833,349
Common Stock [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Available-for-sale equity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	722,015	717,390
Available-for-sale equity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	734,419	653,967
Available-for-sale equity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-3,791	-2,362
Available-for-sale equity securities, Fair Value	1,452,643	1,368,995
Preferred Stocks [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Available-for-sale equity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	23,718	23,690
Available-for-sale equity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	18,123	18,301
Available-for-sale equity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-13	-378
Available-for-sale equity securities, Fair Value	41,828	41,613
U.S. Treasury and Government [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	'	1,738
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	'	6
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	'	1,744
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	24,073	21,751
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	783	725
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	24,856	22,476
U.S. States and Political Subdivisions [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	327,022	346,240
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	25,144	16,945
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-67	-529
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	352,099	362,656
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	746,801	630,199
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	33,661	22,118
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-2,940	-13,756
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	777,522	638,561
Foreign Governments [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	29,122	29,099
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,641	2,505
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	30,763	31,604
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	5,000	5,000
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,900	1,649
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	6,900	6,649
Corporate Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	7,636,327	7,700,559
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	453,220	410,232
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-40,292	-116,900
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	8,049,255	7,993,891
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	3,866,518	3,689,349
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	206,396	171,717
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-16,342	-54,033
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	4,056,572	3,807,033
Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	353,444	400,619
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	22,178	20,711
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-1,921	-2,647
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	373,701	418,683
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	45,644	61,135
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	2,112	2,940
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-754	-1,068
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	47,002	63,007
Collateralized Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	2,236	2,366
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	223	225
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	2,459	2,591
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	12,199	13,884
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,175	1,320
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	-8	-18
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	13,366	15,186
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	'	18,223
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	'	11,037
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	'	29,260
Other Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	16,580	10,726
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,396	1,173
Held-to-maturity securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	17,976	11,899
Available-for-sale debt securities, Cost or Amortized Cost	'	16,850
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized Gains	'	679
Available-for-sale debt securities, Gross Unrealized (Losses)	'	-28
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	'	$17,501

Investments_in_Securities_Matu

Investments in Securities - Maturities of Investments (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Available-for-sale Securities and Held-to-maturity Securities [Abstract]	'	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Amortized Cost, Due in one year or less	$902,160	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Amortized Cost, Due after one year through five years	2,046,277	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Amortized Cost, Due after five years through ten years	4,988,483	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Amortized Cost, Due after ten years	421,961	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Amortized Cost, Without single maturity date	5,850	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Amortized Cost	8,364,731	8,491,347
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Fair Value, Due in one year or less	921,894	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Fair Value, Due after one year through five years	2,257,421	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Fair Value, Due after five years through ten years	5,196,155	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Fair Value, Due after ten years	445,711	'
Bonds Held-to-Maturity, Fair Value, Without single maturity date	5,072	'
Held-to-maturity securities, Fair Value	8,826,253	8,823,068
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Amortized Cost, Due in one year or less	345,538	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Amortized Cost, Due after one year through five years	855,878	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Amortized Cost, Due after five years through ten years	3,029,503	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Amortized Cost, Due after ten years	464,316	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Amortized Cost, Without single maturity date	5,000	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Amortized Cost	4,700,235	4,456,391
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Fair Value, Due in one year or less	351,549	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Fair Value, Due after one year through five years	932,247	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Fair Value, Due after five years through ten years	3,154,290	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Fair Value, Due after ten years	483,132	'
Bonds Available-for-Sale, Fair Value, Without single maturity date	5,000	'
Available-for-sale debt securities, Fair Value	$4,926,218	$4,599,673

Investments_in_Securities_Proc

Investments in Securities - Proceeds from Available for Sale Securities and Realized Gain Loss (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Available-for-sale Securities, Gross Realized Gain (Loss), Disclosures [Abstract]	'	'	'	'
Proceeds from sales of available-for-sale securities	$2,671	$33,390	$139,137	$189,438
Gross realized gains	228	10,349	24,994	33,699
Gross realized losses	$0	($97)	($2,123)	($623)

Investments_in_Securities_Addi

Investments in Securities - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Held-to-maturity Securities, Sales or Transfers of Investments [Abstract]	'	'
Securities transferred from held-to-maturity to available-for-sale	$44,781,000	$13,492,000
Unrealized gain (loss), transferred securities	$1,301,000	$263,000

Investments_in_Securities_Chan

Investments in Securities - Change in Net Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Available-for-Sale Securities (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Schedule of Available-for-sale Securities [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities during the year	'	'	$161,912	$2,120
Adjustments for	'	'	'	'
Deferred policy acquisition costs	'	'	-17,175	46,643
Participating policyholders' interest	'	'	-8,526	1,018
Deferred federal income tax benefit (expense)	'	'	-47,160	-18,212
Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities, net of tax	-17,708	26,747	89,051	31,569
Bonds Available-for-Sale [Member]	'	'	'	'
Schedule of Available-for-sale Securities [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities during the year	'	'	82,701	-163,493
Equity Securities [Member]	'	'	'	'
Schedule of Available-for-sale Securities [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Change in net unrealized gains (losses) on securities during the year	'	'	$79,211	$165,613

Investments_in_Securities_Gros

Investments in Securities - Gross Unrealized Losses and Fair Value of Investment Securities (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	($7,954)	($106,555)
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	530,426	1,970,903
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-34,326	-13,521
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Fair Value	833,377	123,117
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-42,280	-120,076
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Fair Value	1,363,803	2,094,020
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	'	-63,478
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	'	1,279,562
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	'	-5,425
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	'	97,368
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	'	-68,903
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	'	1,376,930
Investment in securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-17,522	-172,773
Investment in securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	991,398	3,286,566
Investment in securities, More than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-48,606	-18,946
Investment in securities, More than 12 months, Fair Value	1,265,928	220,485
Investment in securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-66,128	-191,719
Investment in securities, Total, Fair Value	2,257,326	3,507,051
Common Stock [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-3,791	-2,362
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	37,132	29,978
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-3,791	-2,362
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	37,132	29,978
Preferred Stocks [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-13	-378
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	1,874	6,123
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-13	-378
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	1,874	6,123
Equity Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-3,804	-2,740
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	39,006	36,101
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-3,804	-2,740
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	39,006	36,101
U.S. States and Political Subdivisions [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-2	-529
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	588	22,430
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-65	0
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Fair Value	2,455	0
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-67	-529
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Fair Value	3,043	22,430
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	476	725
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	476	725
Corporate Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-7,727	-104,308
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	511,249	1,916,758
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-32,565	-12,592
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Fair Value	799,719	109,603
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-40,292	-116,900
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Fair Value	1,310,968	2,026,361
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-449	-13,271
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	37,887	168,093
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-2,491	-485
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	79,485	2,905
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-2,940	-13,756
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	117,372	170,998
Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-225	-1,718
Bonds held-to-maturity, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	18,589	31,715
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-1,696	-929
Bonds held-to-maturity, 12 months or more, Fair Value	31,203	13,514
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-1,921	-2,647
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Fair Value	49,792	45,229
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-5,167	-49,198
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	372,578	1,083,677
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-11,175	-4,835
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	338,870	92,004
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-16,342	-54,033
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	711,448	1,175,681
Collateralized Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-147	-978
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	10,908	16,835
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-607	-90
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	13,835	1,872
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-754	-1,068
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	24,743	18,707
Other Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-1	-3
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	117	205
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-7	-15
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	361	587
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-8	-18
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	478	792
Bonds Available-for-Sale [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	'	-28
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	'	10,027
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	'	-28
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	'	10,027
U.S. Treasury and Government [Member]	'	'
Investment [Line Items]	'	'
Bonds held-to-maturity, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	'	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Unrealized (Losses)	-5,764	'
Available-for-sale securities, Less than 12 months, Fair Value	421,966	'
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Unrealized (Losses)	-14,280	'
Available-for-sale securities, 12 months or more, Fair Value	432,551	'
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Unrealized (Losses)	-20,044	'
Available-for-sale securities, Total, Fair Value	$854,517	'

Investments_in_Securities_Bond

Investments in Securities - Bond by Credit Quality Rating Distribution (Detail) (Bonds Held-to-Maturity [Member], Credit Concentration Risk [Member])	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Portfolio of investment by credit quality	100.00%	100.00%
AAA [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Portfolio of investment by credit quality	4.90%	4.90%
AA [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Portfolio of investment by credit quality	12.50%	11.30%
A [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Portfolio of investment by credit quality	40.10%	40.70%
BBB [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Portfolio of investment by credit quality	39.00%	39.20%
BB and Below [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Portfolio of investment by credit quality	3.50%	3.90%

Investments_in_Securities_Equi

Investments in Securities - Equity Securities by Market Sector Distribution (Detail) (Equity Securities [Member], Credit Concentration Risk [Member])	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	100.00%	100.00%
Consumer Goods [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	19.20%	19.80%
Energy and Utilities [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	14.70%	15.00%
Financials [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	18.80%	19.30%
Healthcare [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	13.80%	12.70%
Industrials [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	8.40%	9.00%
Information Technology [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	16.30%	15.70%
Other [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Equity securities with market sector distribution	8.80%	8.50%

Mortgage_Loans_Mortgage_Loans_

Mortgage Loans - Mortgage Loans by Property Type and Geographic Distribution (Detail) (Mortgage Loans On Real Estate Concentration Risk [Member])	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Credit Concentration Risk [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	100.00%	100.00%
Credit Concentration Risk [Member] | Hotel and Motel [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	11.30%	10.00%
Credit Concentration Risk [Member] | Industrial [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	21.20%	24.90%
Credit Concentration Risk [Member] | Office [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	35.60%	34.00%
Credit Concentration Risk [Member] | Retail [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	18.20%	19.60%
Credit Concentration Risk [Member] | Other [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	13.70%	11.50%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	100.00%	100.00%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member] | East North Central [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	19.50%	19.30%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member] | East South Central [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	5.00%	6.80%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member] | Mountain [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	10.30%	10.00%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member] | Pacific [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	12.30%	12.30%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member] | South Atlantic [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	21.00%	19.60%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member] | West South Central [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	25.10%	26.40%
Geographic Concentration Risk [Member] | Other [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Mortgage loans	6.80%	5.60%

Mortgage_Loans_Additional_Info

Mortgage Loans - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013
	MortgageLoan	MortgageLoan
	Loans
Receivables [Abstract]	'	'	'
Number of mortgage loan foreclosed	2	1	'
Mortgage loans foreclosed	$15,945,000	$5,600,000	'
Number of mortgage loans sold	0	0	'
Unamortized discounts	708,000	'	852,000
Unamortized origination fees, mortgage loans	16,378,000	'	15,709,000
Financing receivable, collectively evaluated for impairment	3,279,133,000	'	3,294,235,000
Financing receivable, individually evaluated for impairment	57,024,000	'	17,188,000
Commitment to lend additional funds to debtors with modified loans as TDRs	$0	$0	'
Number of loans in foreclosure process	1	'	'

Mortgage_Loans_Age_Analysis_of

Mortgage Loans - Age Analysis of Past Due Commercial Mortgage Loans (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Financing Receivable, Recorded Investment, Past Due [Line Items]	'	'
30-59 Days Past Due	'	'
60-89 Days Past Due	'	'
Greater Than 90 Days	'	2,739
Total Past Due	'	2,739
Current	3,336,157	3,308,684
Total Mortgage Loans	3,336,157	3,311,423
Allowance for loan losses	17,605	12,181
Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance	3,318,552	3,299,242
Industrial [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Recorded Investment, Past Due [Line Items]	'	'
30-59 Days Past Due	'	'
60-89 Days Past Due	'	'
Greater Than 90 Days	'	2,739
Total Past Due	'	2,739
Current	705,801	821,741
Total Mortgage Loans	705,801	824,480
Office [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Recorded Investment, Past Due [Line Items]	'	'
30-59 Days Past Due	'	'
60-89 Days Past Due	'	'
Greater Than 90 Days	'	'
Total Past Due	'	'
Current	1,191,525	1,124,818
Total Mortgage Loans	1,191,525	1,124,818
Retail [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Recorded Investment, Past Due [Line Items]	'	'
30-59 Days Past Due	'	'
60-89 Days Past Due	'	'
Greater Than 90 Days	'	'
Total Past Due	'	'
Current	610,335	651,236
Total Mortgage Loans	610,335	651,236
Other [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Recorded Investment, Past Due [Line Items]	'	'
30-59 Days Past Due	'	'
60-89 Days Past Due	'	'
Greater Than 90 Days	'	'
Total Past Due	'	'
Current	828,496	710,889
Total Mortgage Loans	$828,496	$710,889

Mortgage_Loans_Commercial_Mort

Mortgage Loans - Commercial Mortgage Loans Placed on Nonaccrual Status (Detail) (Industrial [Member], USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Industrial [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Recorded Investment, Past Due [Line Items]	'	'
Amounts of commercial mortgage loans	$0	$2,739

Mortgage_Loans_Change_in_Allow

Mortgage Loans - Change in Allowance for Credit Losses in Commercial Mortgage Loans (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014
Financing Receivable, Allowance for Credit Losses [Roll Forward]	'
Allowance for credit losses, Collectively Evaluated for Impairment, Beginning Balance	$11,688
Change Due to Factor Development, Collectively Evaluated for Impairment	-441
Change in allowance, Collectively Evaluated for Impairment	775
Allowance for credit losses, Collectively Evaluated for Impairment, Ending Balance	12,022
Allowance for credit losses, Individually Evaluated for Impairment, Beginning balance	493
Change Due to Factor Development, Individually Evaluated for Impairment	0
Change in allowance, Individually Evaluated for Impairment	5,090
Allowance for credit losses, Individually Evaluated for Impairment, Ending balance	$5,583

Mortgage_Loans_Loans_Individua

Mortgage Loans - Loans Individually Evaluated for Impairment With and Without Allowance (Average Recorded Investment and Interest Income Recognized) (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Average Recorded Investments with an Allowance Recorded	$27,564	$23,652	$29,421	$23,727
Interest Income Recognized with an Allowance Recorded	547	393	1,663	1,192
Average Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	30,494	6,432	30,889	6,439
Interest Income Recognized with No Allowance Recorded	478	110	1,424	331
Office [Member]	'	'	'	'
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Average Recorded Investments with an Allowance Recorded	27,564	23,159	29,421	23,234
Interest Income Recognized with an Allowance Recorded	547	393	1,663	1,192
Average Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	26,941	6,432	27,019	6,439
Interest Income Recognized with No Allowance Recorded	431	110	1,298	331
Industrial [Member]	'	'	'	'
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Average Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	2,702	'	2,721	'
Interest Income Recognized with No Allowance Recorded	36	'	110	'
Retail [Member]	'	'	'	'
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Average Recorded Investments with an Allowance Recorded	'	493	'	493
Average Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	851	'	1,149	'
Interest Income Recognized with No Allowance Recorded	$11	'	$16	'

Mortgage_Loans_Loans_Individua1

Mortgage Loans - Loans Individually Evaluated for Impairment With and Without Allowance (Recorded Investment and Unpaid Principal Balance) (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'
Recorded Investments with an Allowance Recorded	$26,662	$493
Unpaid Principal Balance with an Allowance Recorded	27,947	493
Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	30,362	16,695
Unpaid Principal Balance with No Allowance Recorded	30,362	16,695
Office [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'
Recorded Investments with an Allowance Recorded	26,662	'
Unpaid Principal Balance with an Allowance Recorded	27,947	'
Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	26,941	12,377
Unpaid Principal Balance with No Allowance Recorded	26,941	12,377
Industrial [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'
Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	2,702	2,739
Unpaid Principal Balance with No Allowance Recorded	2,702	2,739
Retail [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Impaired [Line Items]	'	'
Recorded Investments with an Allowance Recorded	'	493
Unpaid Principal Balance with an Allowance Recorded	'	493
Recorded Investments with No Allowance Recorded	719	1,579
Unpaid Principal Balance with No Allowance Recorded	$719	$1,579

Mortgage_Loans_Number_of_Mortg

Mortgage Loans - Number of Mortgage Loans and Recorded Investment (Detail) (Office [Member], USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
	Contract	Contract
Office [Member]	'	'
Financing Receivable, Modifications [Line Items]	'	'
Number of contracts	3	1
Recorded investment pre- modification	$34,400	$6,432
Recorded investment post modification	$30,996	$6,432

Investment_Real_Estate_Investm

Investment Real Estate - Investment Real Estate by Property-Type and Geographic Distribution (Detail) (Real Estate [Member])	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Industrial [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	13.80%	12.30%
Office [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	20.70%	23.10%
Retail [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	46.40%	43.40%
Other [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	19.10%	21.20%
East North Central [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	4.80%	7.80%
East South Central [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	4.80%	5.40%
Mountain [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	6.50%	6.00%
Pacific [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	7.40%	5.50%
South Atlantic [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	12.70%	13.40%
West South Central [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	57.10%	59.00%
Other [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	6.70%	2.90%
Property Type Concentration Risk [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	100.00%	100.00%
Geographic Distribution [Member]	'	'
Concentration Risk [Line Items]	'	'
Investment real estate	100.00%	100.00%

Investment_Real_Estate_Assets_

Investment Real Estate - Assets and Liabilities Related to VIEs (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Investment real estate	$458,116	$507,142	'	'
Cash and cash equivalents	136,142	117,946	122,637	303,008
Accrued investment income	198,559	194,830	'	'
Other assets	148,448	142,043	'	'
Notes payable	109,349	113,849	'	'
Other liabilities	433,855	456,818	'	'
Variable Interest Entity, Primary Beneficiary [Member]	'	'	'	'
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Investment real estate	138,994	123,624	'	'
Cash and cash equivalents	1,761	2,154	'	'
Accrued investment income	412	2,197	'	'
Other receivables	7,986	8,488	'	'
Other assets	5,686	6,016	'	'
Total assets of consolidated VIEs	154,839	142,479	'	'
Notes payable	109,349	113,849	'	'
Other liabilities	4,595	6,680	'	'
Total liabilities of consolidated VIEs	$113,944	$120,529	'	'

Investment_Real_Estate_Additio

Investment Real Estate - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
	Note
Debt Instrument [Line Items]	'	'
Maximum amount of investment in long-term notes payable	$14,948,000	$12,782,000
Current portion of notes payable	543,000	3,199,000
Average interest rate on current portion of notes payable	4.25%	'
Number of notes included in notes payable	3	'
Long-term notes payable due in four and five years	$9,375,000	'
Long-Term Notes Payable 1 [Member]	'	'
Debt Instrument [Line Items]	'	'
Interest rate on long-term notes	4.00%	'
Notes payable maturity period	'Beyond 5 years	'
Long-Term Notes Payable 2 [Member]	'	'
Debt Instrument [Line Items]	'	'
Interest on long-term portion of notes payable	'Adjusted LIBOR plus 1.0%	'
Interest on long-term portion of notes payable, basis spread	1.00%	'
Notes payable maturity year	'2016	'
Long-Term Notes Payable 3 [Member]	'	'
Debt Instrument [Line Items]	'	'
Interest on long-term portion of notes payable	'Adjusted LIBOR plus 1.0%	'
Interest on long-term portion of notes payable, basis spread	1.00%	'
Notes payable maturity year	'2016	'

Investment_Real_Estate_Carryin

Investment Real Estate - Carrying Amount and Maximum Exposure to Loss Related to VIEs (Detail) (Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member], USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Mortgage Loans on Real Estate [Member]	'	'
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]	'	'
Carrying Amount	$153,626	$101,648
Maximum Exposure to Loss	153,626	101,648
Investments in Unconsolidated Affiliates [Member]	'	'
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]	'	'
Carrying Amount	195,794	195,794
Maximum Exposure to Loss	195,794	195,794
Accrued Investment Income [Member]	'	'
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]	'	'
Carrying Amount	617	454
Maximum Exposure to Loss	$617	$454

Derivative_Instruments_Schedul

Derivative Instruments - Schedule of Derivative Instruments Reported in Financial Position (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]	'	'
Estimated Fair Value of other invested assets	$170,343	$164,753
Derivative Financial Instruments, Estimated Fair Value	191,760	148,435
Policyholders' Account Balances [Member] | Derivatives Not Designated as Hedging Instruments [Member] | Equity-Indexed Embedded Derivative [Member]	'	'
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]	'	'
Number of Instruments	39,723	33,579
Derivative Notional Amount, Liability	957,600	819,200
Derivative Financial Instruments, Estimated Fair Value	191,760	148,435
Other Invested Assets [Member] | Derivatives Not Designated as Hedging Instruments [Member] | Equity-Indexed Options [Member]	'	'
Derivatives, Fair Value [Line Items]	'	'
Number of Instruments	416	394
Derivative Notional Amount, Asset	1,034,600	951,400
Estimated Fair Value of other invested assets	$170,343	$164,753

Derivative_Instruments_Schedul1

Derivative Instruments - Schedule of Derivative Instruments Reported in Statements of Operations (Detail) (Derivatives Not Designated as Hedging Instruments [Member], USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Net Investment Income [Member] | Equity-Indexed Options [Member]	'	'	'	'
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Gains (Losses) Recognized in Income on Derivatives	$6,562	$13,260	$29,011	$48,019
Interest Credited to Policyholders' Account Balances [Member] | Equity-Indexed Embedded Derivative [Member]	'	'	'	'
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Gains (Losses) Recognized in Income on Derivatives	($1,762)	($11,056)	($16,484)	($39,750)

Net_Investment_Income_and_Real2

Net Investment Income and Realized Investment Gains (Losses) - Summary of Net Investment Income (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Net Investment Income [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income, Total	$236,489	$254,336	$697,604	$752,488
Bonds Available-for-Sale [Member]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income, Total	148,715	157,888	450,110	479,296
Equity Securities [Member]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income, Total	8,146	7,417	26,488	22,653
Mortgage Loans on Real Estate [Member]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income, Total	51,652	55,629	159,010	163,497
Real Estate [Member]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income, Total	14,245	11,297	11,347	10,228
Options [Member]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income, Total	6,562	13,260	29,011	48,019
Other Invested Assets [Member]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Net Investment Income, Total	$7,169	$8,845	$21,638	$28,795

Net_Investment_Income_and_Real3

Net Investment Income and Realized Investment Gains (Losses) - Summary of Realized Investment Gains (Losses) and Other than Temporary Impairment Losses (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Gain (Loss) on Investments [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Realized investment gains (losses)	($649)	$43,795	$27,548	$107,473
Other-than-temporary impairment losses	-1,608	-312	-3,045	-3,503
Bonds Available-for-Sale [Member]	'	'	'	'
Gain (Loss) on Investments [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Realized investment gains (losses)	1,925	9,907	21,837	16,826
Other-than-temporary impairment losses	'	'	-41	'
Equity Securities [Member]	'	'	'	'
Gain (Loss) on Investments [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Realized investment gains (losses)	229	10,149	10,293	30,668
Other-than-temporary impairment losses	-1,608	-312	-3,004	-3,503
Mortgage Loans on Real Estate [Member]	'	'	'	'
Gain (Loss) on Investments [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Realized investment gains (losses)	-1,551	-1,561	-5,424	-1,172
Real Estate [Member]	'	'	'	'
Gain (Loss) on Investments [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Realized investment gains (losses)	-1,242	25,311	1,787	61,257
Other Invested Assets [Member]	'	'	'	'
Gain (Loss) on Investments [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Realized investment gains (losses)	($10)	($11)	($945)	($106)

Fair_Value_of_Financial_Instru2

Fair Value of Financial Instruments - Carrying Amount and Fair Value of Financial Instruments (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity, fair value disclosure	$8,364,731	$8,491,347
Held-to-maturity, fair value disclosure	8,826,253	8,823,068
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,926,218	4,599,673
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,494,471	1,410,608
Equity Indexed Options, fair value disclosure	170,343	164,753
Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance, fair value disclosure	3,318,552	3,299,242
Policy loans, fair value disclosure	404,705	397,407
Short-term investments, fair value disclosure	346,343	495,386
Separate account assets, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial assets, fair value disclosure	20,017,978	19,829,370
Financial liabilities	'	'
Investment contracts, fair value disclosure	9,039,356	9,423,122
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts, fair value disclosure	191,760	148,435
Notes payable, fair value disclosure	109,349	113,849
Separate account liabilities, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial liabilities, fair value disclosure	10,333,080	10,656,360
Fair Value [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity, fair value disclosure	8,826,253	8,823,068
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,926,218	4,599,673
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,494,471	1,410,608
Equity Indexed Options, fair value disclosure	170,343	164,753
Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance, fair value disclosure	3,515,463	3,470,663
Policy loans, fair value disclosure	404,705	397,407
Short-term investments, fair value disclosure	346,343	495,386
Separate account assets, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial assets, fair value disclosure	20,676,411	20,332,512
Financial liabilities	'	'
Investment contracts, fair value disclosure	9,039,356	9,423,122
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts, fair value disclosure	191,760	148,435
Notes payable, fair value disclosure	109,349	113,849
Separate account liabilities, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial liabilities, fair value disclosure	$10,333,080	$10,656,360

Fair_Value_of_Financial_Instru3

Fair Value of Financial Instruments - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]	'	'	'
Volatility rate used to estimate derivative values	16.00%	'	15.00%
Unrealized gain (loss) relating to assets still held and included in net investment income	$7,395,000	$39,652,000	'

Fair_Value_of_Financial_Instru4

Fair Value of Financial Instruments - Quantitative Disclosures Regarding Fair Value Hierarchy Measurements (Detail) (USD $)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	$8,826,253	$8,823,068
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,926,218	4,599,673
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,494,471	1,410,608
Equity Indexed Options, fair value disclosure	170,343	164,753
Policy loans, fair value disclosure	404,705	397,407
Short-term investments, fair value disclosure	346,343	495,386
Separate account assets, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Financial liabilities	'	'
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts, fair value disclosure	191,760	148,435
Separate account liabilities, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
U.S. Treasury and Government [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	'	1,744
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	24,856	22,476
U.S. States and Political Subdivisions [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	352,099	362,656
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	777,522	638,561
Foreign Governments [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	30,763	31,604
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	6,900	6,649
Corporate Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	8,049,255	7,993,891
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,056,572	3,807,033
Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	373,701	418,683
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	47,002	63,007
Collateralized Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	2,459	2,591
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	13,366	15,186
Other Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	17,976	11,899
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	'	17,501
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	'	29,260
Common Stock [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,452,643	1,368,995
Preferred Stocks [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	41,828	41,613
Recurring [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	8,826,253	8,823,068
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,926,218	4,599,673
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,494,471	1,410,608
Equity Indexed Options, fair value disclosure	170,343	164,753
Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance, fair value disclosure	3,515,463	3,470,663
Policy loans, fair value disclosure	404,705	397,407
Short-term investments, fair value disclosure	346,343	495,386
Separate account assets, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial assets, fair value disclosure	20,676,411	20,332,512
Financial liabilities	'	'
Investment contracts, fair value disclosure	9,039,356	9,423,122
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts, fair value disclosure	191,760	148,435
Notes payable, fair value disclosure	109,349	113,849
Separate account liabilities, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial liabilities, fair value disclosure	10,333,080	10,656,360
Recurring [Member] | Level 1 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,494,471	1,410,608
Total financial assets, fair value disclosure	1,494,471	1,410,608
Recurring [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	8,767,600	8,776,009
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,884,074	4,551,369
Mortgage loans on real estate, net of allowance, fair value disclosure	3,515,463	3,470,663
Short-term investments, fair value disclosure	346,343	495,386
Separate account assets, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial assets, fair value disclosure	18,506,095	18,264,381
Financial liabilities	'	'
Separate account liabilities, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Total financial liabilities, fair value disclosure	992,615	970,954
Recurring [Member] | Level 3 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	58,653	47,059
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	42,144	48,304
Equity Indexed Options, fair value disclosure	170,343	164,753
Policy loans, fair value disclosure	404,705	397,407
Total financial assets, fair value disclosure	675,845	657,523
Financial liabilities	'	'
Investment contracts, fair value disclosure	9,039,356	9,423,122
Embedded derivative liability for equity-indexed contracts, fair value disclosure	191,760	148,435
Notes payable, fair value disclosure	109,349	113,849
Total financial liabilities, fair value disclosure	9,340,465	9,685,406
Recurring [Member] | U.S. Treasury and Government [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	'	1,744
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	24,856	22,476
Recurring [Member] | U.S. Treasury and Government [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	'	1,744
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	24,856	22,476
Recurring [Member] | U.S. States and Political Subdivisions [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	352,099	362,656
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	777,522	638,561
Recurring [Member] | U.S. States and Political Subdivisions [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	352,099	362,656
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	775,012	636,041
Recurring [Member] | U.S. States and Political Subdivisions [Member] | Level 3 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	2,510	2,520
Recurring [Member] | Foreign Governments [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	30,763	31,604
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	6,900	6,649
Recurring [Member] | Foreign Governments [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	30,763	31,604
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	6,900	6,649
Recurring [Member] | Corporate Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	8,049,255	7,993,891
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,056,572	3,807,033
Recurring [Member] | Corporate Debt Securities [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	7,998,901	7,950,418
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	4,021,030	3,794,809
Recurring [Member] | Corporate Debt Securities [Member] | Level 3 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	50,354	43,473
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	35,542	12,224
Recurring [Member] | Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	373,701	418,683
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	47,002	63,007
Recurring [Member] | Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	372,724	417,688
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	45,076	60,841
Recurring [Member] | Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member] | Level 3 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	977	995
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	1,926	2,166
Recurring [Member] | Collateralized Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	2,459	2,591
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	13,366	15,186
Recurring [Member] | Collateralized Debt Securities [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	11,200	13,052
Recurring [Member] | Collateralized Debt Securities [Member] | Level 3 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	2,459	2,591
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	2,166	2,134
Recurring [Member] | Other Debt Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	17,976	11,899
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	'	17,501
Recurring [Member] | Other Debt Securities [Member] | Level 2 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	13,113	11,899
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	'	17,501
Recurring [Member] | Other Debt Securities [Member] | Level 3 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Held-to-maturity securities, fair value disclosure	4,863	'
Recurring [Member] | Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	'	29,260
Recurring [Member] | Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities [Member] | Level 3 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Fixed maturity securities, bonds available-for-sale, fair value disclosure	'	29,260
Recurring [Member] | Common Stock [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,452,643	1,368,995
Recurring [Member] | Common Stock [Member] | Level 1 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	1,452,643	1,368,995
Recurring [Member] | Preferred Stocks [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	41,828	41,613
Recurring [Member] | Preferred Stocks [Member] | Level 1 [Member]	'	'
Financial assets	'	'
Equity securities, fair value disclosure	$41,828	$41,613

Fair_Value_of_Financial_Instru5

Fair Value of Financial Instruments - Financial Instruments Measured at Fair Value on Recurring Basis Using (Level 3) Inputs (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Embedded Derivative Liability [Member]	'	'	'	'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring Basis Unobservable Input Reconciliation [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Beginning balance	$186,261	$100,963	$148,435	$75,032
Total realized and unrealized investment gains/losses included in other comprehensive income	0	0	0	0
Net fair value change included in realized gains/losses	0	0	0	0
Net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income	0	0	0	0
Net change included in interest credited	1,762	11,056	16,484	39,750
Purchases	0	0	0	0
Sales	0	0	0	0
Settlements or maturities	0	0	0	0
Premiums less benefits	3,737	-730	26,841	-3,493
Gross transfers into Level 3	0	0	0	0
Gross transfers out of Level 3	0	0	0	0
Ending balance	191,760	111,289	191,760	111,289
Investment Securities [Member]	'	'	'	'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring Basis Unobservable Input Reconciliation [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Beginning balance	11,932	55,558	48,304	107,036
Total realized and unrealized investment gains/losses included in other comprehensive income	138	-633	-11,735	10,496
Net fair value change included in realized gains/losses	0	-1	13,056	218
Net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income	0	0	0	0
Net change included in interest credited	0	0	0	0
Purchases	0	45	0	2,115
Sales	-120	-138	-37,670	-14,272
Settlements or maturities	-5	0	-10	0
Premiums less benefits	0	0	0	0
Gross transfers into Level 3	30,199	157	30,199	157
Gross transfers out of Level 3	0	-2,840	0	-53,602
Ending balance	42,144	52,148	42,144	52,148
Equity-Indexed Options [Member]	'	'	'	'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring Basis Unobservable Input Reconciliation [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Beginning balance	163,861	115,558	164,753	82,625
Total realized and unrealized investment gains/losses included in other comprehensive income	0	0	0	0
Net fair value change included in realized gains/losses	0	0	0	0
Net gain (loss) for derivatives included in net investment income	4,998	11,775	23,788	42,941
Net change included in interest credited	0	0	0	0
Purchases	3,655	4,470	12,345	12,178
Sales	0	0	0	0
Settlements or maturities	-2,171	-2,054	-30,543	-7,995
Premiums less benefits	0	0	0	0
Gross transfers into Level 3	0	0	0	0
Gross transfers out of Level 3	0	0	0	0
Ending balance	$170,343	$129,749	$170,343	$129,749

Deferred_Policy_Acquisition_Co2

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs - Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs [Line Items]	'
Beginning balance	$1,277,733
Additions	290,601
Amortization	-301,455
Effect of change in unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities	-17,175
Net change	-28,029
Ending balance	1,249,704
Life [Member]	'
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs [Line Items]	'
Beginning balance	684,084
Additions	77,261
Amortization	-61,488
Effect of change in unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities	-4,147
Net change	11,626
Ending balance	695,710
Annuity [Member]	'
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs [Line Items]	'
Beginning balance	424,158
Additions	36,413
Amortization	-58,469
Effect of change in unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities	-13,028
Net change	-35,084
Ending balance	389,074
Accident and Health [Member]	'
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs [Line Items]	'
Beginning balance	47,220
Additions	14,949
Amortization	-14,084
Net change	865
Ending balance	48,085
Property and Casualty [Member]	'
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs [Line Items]	'
Beginning balance	122,271
Additions	161,978
Amortization	-167,414
Net change	-5,436
Ending balance	$116,835

Liability_for_Unpaid_Claims_an2

Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claim Adjustment Expenses - Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claim Adjustment Expenses (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Liability For Unpaid Claims And Claims Adjustment Expense Net	'	'
Less reinsurance recoverables	$414,743	'
Incurred related to	'	'
Prior years	29,044,000	50,553,000
Paid claims related to	'	'
Plus reinsurance recoverables	410,525	'
Property and Casualty Accident and Health [Member]	'	'
Liability For Unpaid Claims And Claims Adjustment Expense Net	'	'
Unpaid claims balance, beginning	1,096,299	1,168,047
Less reinsurance recoverables	215,161	256,885
Net beginning balance	881,138	911,162
Incurred related to	'	'
Current	706,824	743,194
Prior years	-29,044	-50,553
Total incurred claims	677,780	692,641
Paid claims related to	'	'
Current	410,077	442,100
Prior years	252,082	266,472
Total paid claims	662,159	708,572
Net balance	896,759	895,231
Net balance	896,759	895,231
Plus reinsurance recoverables	235,485	226,822
Unpaid claims balance, ending	$1,132,244	$1,122,053

Liability_for_Unpaid_Claims_an3

Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claim Adjustment Expenses - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Insurance [Abstract]	'	'
Description of increase (decrease) in claims and claim adjustment expenses	'The net and gross reserve calculations have shown favorable development for the last several years as a result of favorable loss emergence compared to what was implied by the loss development patterns used in the original estimation of losses in prior years.	'
Increase (decrease) in claims and claim adjustments expenses amount	$29,044,000	$50,553,000

Federal_Income_Taxes_Effective

Federal Income Taxes - Effective Income Tax Reconciliation (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]	'	'	'	'
Income tax (benefit) on pre-tax income	$33,171	$42,302	$82,308	$93,527
Tax-exempt investment income	-1,742	-1,502	-4,897	-4,700
Dividend exclusion	-1,700	-1,710	-5,253	-4,802
Miscellaneous tax credits, net	-2,658	-1,930	-5,873	-5,820
Other items, net	-322	-1,401	-621	-6,326
Total provision (benefit) for federal income taxes	$26,749	$35,759	$65,664	$71,879
Income tax (benefit) on pre-tax income	35.00%	35.00%	35.00%	35.00%
Tax-exempt investment income	-1.80%	-1.20%	-2.10%	-1.80%
Dividend exclusion	-1.80%	-1.40%	-2.20%	-1.80%
Miscellaneous tax credits, net	-2.80%	-1.60%	-2.50%	-2.20%
Other items, net	-0.30%	-1.20%	-0.30%	-2.30%
Total, Rate	28.30%	29.60%	27.90%	26.90%

Federal_Income_Taxes_Additiona

Federal Income Taxes - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]	'	'	'
Income taxes paid or refunded, net	$41,121,000	$37,784,000	'
Valuation allowance	0	'	0
Ordinary loss tax carryforwards subject to expiration	2,260,000	'	'
Ordinary loss tax carryforwards expiration date	31-Dec-34	'	'
Provision for penalties recognized relating to uncertain tax positions	0	0	'
Interest expense recognized relating to uncertain tax positions	$0	$0	'

Accumulated_Other_Comprehensiv2

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) - Components of Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Beginning balance	'	'	$413,712	$242,010
Amounts reclassified from AOCI, net of tax benefit (expense)	'	'	-14,387	-14,468
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period, net of tax expense	'	'	121,782	24,658
Unrealized adjustment to DAC, net of tax expense (benefit)	'	'	-10,650	29,344
Unrealized (gains) losses on investments attributable to participating policyholders' interest, net of tax expense (benefit)	'	'	-5,542	662
Foreign currency adjustment, net of tax benefit	-476	-625	-577	-211
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Ending balance	504,338	281,995	504,338	281,995
Net Unrealized Gains/(Losses) on Securities [Member]	'	'	'	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Beginning balance	'	'	457,937	370,842
Amounts reclassified from AOCI, net of tax benefit (expense)	'	'	-16,539	-23,095
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period, net of tax expense	'	'	121,782	24,658
Unrealized adjustment to DAC, net of tax expense (benefit)	'	'	-10,650	29,344
Unrealized (gains) losses on investments attributable to participating policyholders' interest, net of tax expense (benefit)	'	'	-5,542	662
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Ending balance	546,988	402,411	546,988	402,411
Defined Benefit Pension Plan Adjustments [Member]	'	'	'	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Beginning balance	'	'	-43,884	-129,003
Amounts reclassified from AOCI, net of tax benefit (expense)	'	'	2,152	8,627
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Ending balance	-41,732	-120,376	-41,732	-120,376
Foreign Currency Adjustments [Member]	'	'	'	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]	'	'	'	'
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Beginning balance	'	'	-341	171
Foreign currency adjustment, net of tax benefit	'	'	-577	-211
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, Ending balance	($918)	($40)	($918)	($40)

Accumulated_Other_Comprehensiv3

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) - Components of Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Parenthetical) (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Equity [Abstract]	'	'
Amounts reclassified from AOCI, sale of securities tax benefit (expense)	$8,906	$12,720
Amounts reclassified from AOCI, pension tax benefit (expense)	1,159	4,645
Unrealized holding gains (losses) arising during the period, tax expense	65,575	13,277
Unrealized adjustment to deferred policy acquisition costs, tax expense (benefit)	6,525	17,299
Unrealized (gains) losses on investments attributable to participating policyholders' interest, tax expense (benefit)	2,984	356
Foreign currency adjustment, tax (benefit)	($311)	($114)

Stockholders_Equity_and_Noncon2

Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)

9 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

12 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2014

Sep. 30, 2013

Dec. 31, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Sep. 30, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Sep. 30, 2014

Sep. 30, 2014

Dec. 31, 2012

Sep. 30, 2014

Parent Company [Member]

Parent Company [Member]

Insurance Subsidiary [Member]

Insurance Subsidiary [Member]

County Mutual [Member]

County Mutual [Member]

Other Subsidiaries [Member]

Other Subsidiaries [Member]

Stock Appreciation Rights [Member]

Restricted Stock Units [Member]

Restricted Stock Units [Member]

Restricted Stock Units [Member]

Restricted Stock Awards [Member]

MISSOURI

MISSOURI

Graded Vesting [Member]

Graded Vesting [Member]

Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Common stock, par value

$1

'

$1

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Common stock, shares authorized

50,000,000

'

50,000,000

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Maximum limit of shares available for grants under stock-based compensation plan

2,900,000

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Maximum limit of shares granted to any one individual in any calendar year

200,000

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Vesting rate per year

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

20.00%

'

'

'

'

Vesting period

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'5 years

'

'3 years

'

'10 years

Expiration of vesting period

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'5 years

'

'

'

'

Conversion of RSUs into common stock

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

1

'

'

'

Reclassification of equity to liability

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

$7,974,000

'

Incremental cost of modification

5,310,000

2,947,000

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Shares granted

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

350,334

Exercise price of Restricted shares granted

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

$0

Number of shares unvested

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

142,667

Lapse restrictions on restricted stock awards

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'10 years

Risk based capital action level percentage

200.00%

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Company's statutory capital and surplus

'

'

'

2,842,984,000

2,667,858,000

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Statutory accounting practices permitted practice amount

'

'

'

'

'

60,732,000

56,205,000

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Description of regulatory capital requirement

'American National Insurance Company's payment of dividends to stockholders is restricted by state laws. The restrictions require life insurance companies to maintain minimum amounts of capital and surplus, and in the absence of special approval, limit the payment of dividends to the greater of prior year statutory net income from operations on an annual, non-cumulative basis, or 10% of prior year statutory surplus.

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Statutory amount available for dividend payments without regulatory approval

266,786,000

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Noncontrolling interest

$12,279,000

'

$12,757,000

'

'

'

'

$6,750,000

$6,750,000

$5,529,000

$6,007,000

'

'

'

'

'

Stockholders_Equity_and_Noncon3

Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests - Common Stock, Amounts Outstanding (Detail)	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Stockholders' Equity Note [Abstract]	'	'
Shares issued	30,832,449	30,832,449
Treasury shares	-3,960,507	-3,937,261
Outstanding shares	26,871,942	26,895,188
Restricted shares	-142,667	-190,667
Unrestricted outstanding shares	26,729,275	26,704,521

Stockholders_Equity_and_Noncon4

Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests - Stock-Based Compensation Information (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013
Stock Appreciation Rights [Member]	'	'	'	'	'
Authorized Classes Of Cumulative Preferred And Preference Stocks [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Beginning balance, Shares	'	'	74,435	'	'
Exercised, Shares	'	'	-2,817	'	'
Expired, Shares	'	'	-15,279	'	'
Ending balance, Shares	56,339	'	56,339	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Beginning balance	'	'	$114.08	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Exercised	'	'	$95.58	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Expired	'	'	$115.23	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Ending balance	$114.69	'	$114.69	'	'
Weighted-average contractual remaining life	'	'	'2 years	'	'
Weighted-average exercise price	'	'	$114.69	'	'
Weighted-average exercise price exercisable shares	$114.78	'	$114.78	'	'
Compensation expense (credits)	($19,000)	$87,000	($33,000)	$160,000	'
Fair value of liability award	157,000	'	157,000	'	376,000
Restricted Stock Awards [Member]	'	'	'	'	'
Authorized Classes Of Cumulative Preferred And Preference Stocks [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Beginning balance, Shares	'	'	190,667	'	'
Exercised, Shares	'	'	-48,000	'	'
Ending balance, Shares	142,667	'	142,667	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Beginning balance	'	'	$107.54	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Exercised	'	'	$108	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Ending balance	$107.39	'	$107.39	'	'
Weighted-average contractual remaining life	'	'	'4 years 1 month 6 days	'	'
Weighted-average exercise price	'	'	$107.39	'	'
Compensation expense (credits)	496,000	674,000	2,577,000	1,703,000	'
Restricted Stock Units [Member]	'	'	'	'	'
Authorized Classes Of Cumulative Preferred And Preference Stocks [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Beginning balance, Shares	'	'	121,369	'	'
Granted, Shares	'	'	66,383	'	'
Exercised, Shares	'	'	-59,438	'	'
Forfeited, Shares	'	'	-100	'	'
Ending balance, Shares	128,214	'	128,214	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Beginning balance	'	'	$76.23	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Granted	'	'	$113.49	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Exercised	'	'	$76.53	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Forfeited	'	'	$113.49	'	'
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value, Ending balance	$95.82	'	$95.82	'	'
Weighted-average contractual remaining life	'	'	'2 years	'	'
Weighted-average exercise price	'	'	$95.82	'	'
Compensation expense (credits)	522,000	409,000	6,447,000	8,692,000	'
Fair value of liability award	$15,039,000	'	$15,039,000	'	$15,018,000

Stockholders_Equity_and_Noncon5

Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests - Summary of Basic and Diluted Earnings Per Share (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]	'	'	'	'
Weighted average shares outstanding	26,805,535	26,780,313	26,800,835	26,789,564
Incremental shares from RS awards and RSUs	105,972	124,780	118,579	120,453
Total shares for diluted calculations	26,911,507	26,905,093	26,919,414	26,910,017
Net income (loss) attributable to American National	$67,884	$82,613	$178,023	$200,753
Basic earnings per share	$2.53	$3.08	$6.64	$7.49
Diluted earnings per share	$2.52	$3.07	$6.61	$7.46

Stockholders_Equity_and_Noncon6

Stockholders' Equity and Noncontrolling Interests - Statutory Capital and Surplus and Net Income (Loss) of Insurance Entities in Accordance with Statutory Accounting Practices (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013
Life [Member]	'	'	'	'	'
Statutory Accounting Practices [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Statutory capital and surplus	$1,898,939	'	$1,898,939	'	$1,771,999
Statutory net income	43,447	59,602	139,564	159,286	'
Property and Casualty [Member]	'	'	'	'	'
Statutory Accounting Practices [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Statutory capital and surplus	952,964	'	952,964	'	904,557
Statutory net income	$22,718	$20,205	$44,852	$26,136	'

Segment_Information_Additional

Segment Information - Additional Information (Detail)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
	Segment
Segment Reporting [Abstract]	'
Segment information, number of operating segments	5

Segment_Information_Summary_of

Segment Information - Summary of Results of Operations by Operating Segments (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Income (loss) from continuing operations	$94,775	$120,864	$235,165	$267,222	$235,165	$267,222
Life [Member]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Income (loss) from continuing operations	10,794	9,005	22,076	23,420	'	'
Annuity [Member]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Income (loss) from continuing operations	24,366	18,631	70,415	69,633	'	'
Accident and Health [Member]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Income (loss) from continuing operations	9,304	7,170	19,579	16,164	'	'
Property and Casualty [Member]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Income (loss) from continuing operations	30,088	24,634	59,790	33,198	'	'
Corporate and Other [Member]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'	'
Income (loss) from continuing operations	$20,223	$61,424	$63,305	$124,807	'	'

Commitments_and_Contingencies_

Commitments and Contingencies - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]	'	'
Commitments outstanding, aggregate amount	$452,166,000	'
Commitments expected to be funded in 2014	176,259,000	'
Commitments expected to be funded in 2015 and beyond	275,907,000	'
Short-term borrowing facility, maximum capacity	100,000,000	'
Short-term borrowing facility, letters of credit	55,000,000	'
Letters of credit outstanding, amount	12,191,000	15,560,000
Short-term borrowing facility, expiration date	30-Oct-15	'
Short-term borrowing	100,000,000	'
Total amount of guarantees outstanding	206,376,000	'
Life insurance policies with guarantees, cash value	$208,418,000	'

Related_Party_Transactions_Rel

Related Party Transactions - Related Party Transactions (Detail) (USD $)

9 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

In Thousands, unless otherwise specified

Sep. 30, 2014

Sep. 30, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Sep. 30, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Sep. 30, 2013

Sep. 30, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]

Greer, Herz and Adams, LLP [Member]

Greer, Herz and Adams, LLP [Member]

Greer, Herz and Adams, LLP [Member]

Greer, Herz and Adams, LLP [Member]

Mortgage Loan on Real Estate Income Statement Effect [Member]

Mortgage Loan on Real Estate Income Statement Effect [Member]

Net Investment Income [Member]

Net Investment Income [Member]

Mortgage Loan On Real Estate [Member]

Mortgage Loan On Real Estate [Member]

Net Investment Income Accrual [Member]

Net Investment Income Accrual [Member]

Other Operating Expenses [Member]

Other Operating Expenses [Member]

Other Operating Expenses Accrual [Member]

Other Operating Expenses Accrual [Member]

Related Party Transaction [Line Items]

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Dollar amount of transactions

$917

$853

$399

$463

'

'

'

'

$8,037

$7,484

'

'

Amount due to/(from) American National

'

'

'

'

$6,825

$7,742

$41

$47

'

'

($404)

($284)

Related_Party_Transactions_Add

Related Party Transactions - Additional Information (Detail)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Parent Company [Member] | Moody Foundation [Member]	'
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]	'
Ownership percentage in mortgage loans	22.90%
Parent Company [Member] | Libbie Shearn Moody Trust [Member]	'
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]	'
Ownership percentage in mortgage loans	37.10%
Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member]	'
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]	'
Interest rate on mortgage loans	7.30%
Due date of mortgage loans receivable	1-Apr-19
Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member] | Moody Foundation [Member]	'
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]	'
Ownership percentage in mortgage loans	34.00%
Gal-Tex Hotel Corporation [Member] | Libbie Shearn Moody Trust [Member]	'
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]	'
Ownership percentage in mortgage loans	50.20%