The communication management apparatus includes a network-presence-check processing unit that performs network presence check processing for generating network presence information, a token-circulation-order determining unit that determines token circulation order using the network presence information, a setup processing unit that notifies each of communication nodes in the network of token circulation destination information, a token-frame processing unit that, after transmission of a data frame by a data-frame-communication processing unit, transmits, based on the token circulation order, a token frame including information concerning a transmission right acquiring apparatus that acquires a transmission right next and determines whether the transmission right acquiring apparatus of the transmission right acquiring apparatus information of the received token frame is the own apparatus, and the data-frame-communication processing unit that performs transmission and reception processing for a data frame for acquiring the transmission right.