U.S. English Foundation Research

TAJIKISTAN

Language Research

During the Soviet era Russian was the official language, dominating in all spheres of public life. However, Tajik was not abandoned entirely. The policy in Tajikistan differed from that of Kyrgyzstan. Schools with Russian, Tajik or Uzbek as the language of instruction depended on the ethnic composition residing in the certain territory. Literature, theatre, all forms of art based on linguistic form of expression, existed in Tajik, and were in fact flourishing and popular among Tajiks. Programs at both the professional and higher education institutions were available in the Russian and Tajik languages. This situation was possible mostly due to the fact that Tajiks comprised a majority of the population, with Russian speakers living predominantly in urban areas. The majority of Tajiks were bilingual, especially in urban areas. This is still the case, notwithstanding the dramatic change of the ethnic composition that took place due to the Civil war of 1990's.

The Russian speaking population was comprised of Russians as well as Ukrainians, Belorussians and Germans. They used the advantages that came with being the Russian speakers and knowledge of Tajik was not widely spread among them. Although Tajik was in the curricula of all non-Tajik schools, the level of teaching was insufficient. On the other hand, the status of Russian as the language of official business and science resulted in the situation that very little importance was attached to learning the Tajik language at schools.

UZBEKS

Ethnic Uzbeks make up approximately one quarter of the population but lack substantial representation in official positions. The number of Uzbek language newspapers, television broadcasts, and schools has declined significantly since 1992. With the exception of the trilingual (Tajik/Uzbek/Russian) school structure, the Uzbek language has no official status. Although the Government permits a daily Uzbek radio broadcast, Tajik and Russian language programs dominate. A weekly television broadcast in Uzbek ceased in August.

RUSSIANS

In practice Russian is the language of interethnic communication and is widely used in government. While the government has repeatedly expressed its desire for the ethnic Russian and Slavic population to remain in the country, economic conditions provide little incentive for them to do so. Some local Russians and other Slavs perceive an increase in negative social attitudes toward them. A Slavic University (established in 1995) and a Russian high school operate in Dushanbe with Russian as the language of instruction, but also include Tajik and Uzbek students. An agreement ratified by the Russian Duma in December 1996 allows for dual Russian and Tajik citizenship.

EDUCATION

The languages of instruction in the state system were Tajik, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, and Russian. When Tajik became the state language in 1989, schools using Russian as the primary language of instruction began teaching Tajik as a second language from the first through the eleventh grade. After independence, school curricula included more Tajik language and literature study and classical Persian literature. However, few textbooks were available in Tajik so that by the end of the 1980s, only 10 to 25% of students attending Tajik-language schools had textbooks or other teaching materials in their own language.

The pre-independence government of Tajikistan made some provision for the distinctive needs of minority nationalities living within the republic's borders. It provided education, mass media, and cultural offerings in Russian. In 1988 state radio began broadcasting in German, Kyrgyz, and Crimean Tatar. There were several Uzbek-language bookstores in the Republic. Late in the Soviet era, Dushanbe had cultural centers for Uzbeks, Ukrainians, and members of other nationalities as well as restaurants that provided ethnic foods for Uzbeks, Tatars, Koreans, and Germans.

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