spread the Islamic faith amongst the Sundanese people. Small traditional Sundanese communities retained their indigenous social and belief systems, adopting self-imposed isolation, and refused foreign influences, proselytism and modernisation altogether, such as those of the Baduy (Kanekes) people of inland Lebak Regency. Some Sundanese villages such as those in Cigugur Kuningan retained their Sunda Wiwitan beliefs, while some villages such as Kampung Naga in Tasikmalaya, and Sindang Barang Pasir Eurih in Bogor, although identifying themselves as Muslim, still uphold pre-Islamic traditions and taboos and venerated the karuhun (ancestral spirits). Today, most Sundanese are Sunni Muslims. After western Java fell under the control of Dutch East India Company (VOC) in the early 18th century, and later under the Dutch East Indies, Christian evangelism towards the Sundanese people was started by missionaries of Genootschap voor In- en Uitwendige Zending te Batavia (GIUZ). This organisation was founded by Mr F. L. Anthing and Pastor E. W. King in 1851. However, it was Nederlandsche Zendelings Vereeniging (NZV) that sent their missionaries to convert the Sundanese peoples. They started the mission in Batavia, later expanding into several towns in West Java such as Bandung, Cianjur, Cirebon, Bogor and Sukabumi. They built schools, churches and hospitals for native people in West Java. Compared to the large Sundanese Muslim population, the numbers of Christian Sundanese are scarce. Today, Christians in West Java are mostly Chinese Indonesians residing in West Java, with only small numbers of native Sundanese Christians. In contemporary Sundanese social and religious life, there is a growing shift towards Islamism, especially amongst urban Sundanese. Compared to the 1960s, many Sundanese Muslim women today have decided to wear hijab. The same phenomenon was also found earlier in the Malay community in Sumatra and Malaysia. Modern history saw the rise of political Islam through the birth of Darul Islam Indonesia in Tasikmalaya, West Java, back in 1949, although this movement was later cracked down by the Indonesian Republic. In modern contemporary political landscapes, the Sundanese realm in West Java and Banten also provides widespread support for Islamic parties such as the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the United Development Party (PPP). There are numbers of Sundanese ulama and Islamic preachers who have been successful in gaining national popularity, such as Kyai Abdullah Gymnastiar and Mamah Dedeh who have become TV personalities through their dakwah show. There is an increasing number of Sundanese people who consider the Hajj