The largest of the several existing Parmalim groups has its centre in Huta Tinggi in the vicinity of Laguboti on the south shore of Lake Toba.
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At the end of the 19th and in the beginning of the 20th century the Parmalim movement, which originated in Toba lands spread to other areas of the Batak lands.
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Especially in the lower Karo lands, the 'dusun'm the Malim religion, became very influential as an expression of anti-colonial sentiments at the turn of the 20th century.
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In his book "Toba na Sae; Sejarah lembaga sosial politik abad XIII-XX ( Jakarta: Komunitas Bambu, 2004) the Indonesian poet Sitor Situmorang describes the encounter between Guru Somalaing and Elio Modigliani who later wrote a book about his journeys into the independent Batak lands in his book "Fra i Batacchi indipendenti; Viaggio di Elio Modigliani" (1892 Roma: Società Geografica Italiana).