Tracing History of Christians in Middle East

History of Christianity in the Middle East
Christianity originated in the Near East (now encompassed by the Middle East) during the 1st Century A.D. and Christian communities have survived in the region for the past 2,000 years.
As Christianity grew, it coexisted alongside older traditions--Judaism, Zoroastrianism and the monotheism of the Druze, Yazidis and Mandeans, among others--all of which survive in the region, though in vastly diminished form.
Christianity survived the rise of Islam and thrived under the successive Muslim empires.
Near Eastern Christians are members of a large number of churches and traditions, including the Coptic Christians, the Assyrian Church, the Melkite Church and many other Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant denominations.