In Tajikistan, the language of communication, writing, and education is Tajik Persian. Wakhi oral tradition is also bilingual in Wakhi and Tajik and many Wakhis also speak Shughni, the second lingua franca of the Pamir region. Schooling is obligatory for everyone in Tajikistan and the medium of education is Tajiki, leaving only old women and young children monolingual. This diminishes the role of Wakhi in public contexts, though it is still preferred in domestic settings. Until very recently, the Wakhi speakers in Tajikistan felt themselves a marginalized group with negative attitudes toward their language; however the poems published in Reinhold (1992a) indicate that there is an incipient awakening of interest in local languages. In Afghanistan Wakhis also speak Dari Persian, or Pashto. However, literacy is not widespread and the admixture of other elements into Wakhi is less than in Tajikistan. Almost 100%% of Wakhi-speaking children in Hunza now attend school, which exerts greater influence on language than any single factor in the past. This has resulted in an enormous literacy gap between younger and older generations. All school-going children and many young women up to the age of 20 know Urdu, whereas hardly any of the older generation do. Nevertheless, it is an increasingly vital language, and speakers have a very positive attitude toward their language, evidenced by the Wakhi Tajik Cultural Association.