under its authority is called the Jabal al-Druze (the "Mountain of the Druze"). The rest of the community mainly live in the Quneitra Governorate, the Rif Dimashq Governorate, and the Idlib Governorate. Even though the faith originally developed out of Ismaili Islam, most Druze do not identify as Muslims, and they do not accept the five pillars of Islam. There are many Syrian Druze that are also living abroad, particularly in Latin America, who have been living there for over the past hundred years. In Venezuela alone there are approximately half a million Druze of Syrian origin. Ahmadiyya The history of the movement in Syria begins in the 1920s, when the second caliph of the Community, Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood Ahmad visited Damascus, as part of his tour of Europe and the Middle East. The caliph appointed Sayyid Zayn al'Abidin Waliullah Shah and Jalal al-Din Shams to be sent for missionary work in Damascus. Along with Maulvi Abu'l-'Ata Jalandhari, who arrived for a mission in Jerusalem, the three missionaries spent their time spreading Ahmadi teachings in major towns and cities across the Middle East, including Haifa, Beirut and Cairo. Quraniya There is also a Quraniya or Quranist community within Syria, whose early documentation began forming in the 19th century and followed the teachings set forth by the Indian theologian Seyyid Ahmed Khan Hindi and then spread to Syria soon afterwards via intermediary pilgrims. However, Ahl al-Qur'an adherents precede these 19th century developments in the form of Mu'tazilites such as Ibrahim al-Nazzam, who lived for some period in these environs. Contemporary adherents of the Quranist point of view in Syria include Muhammad Shahrur. See also Islamization Spread of Islam Muslim conquests List of mosques in Syria Religion in Syria References Bibliography External links Islamic Education in Syria Syria Muslim conquest of the Levant