Tajikistan: Language Situation

2006

Tajikistan, an independent Central Asian state since 1991, has Tajik, a variety of Persian, as its national language. Turkic-speaking groups, mainly Uzbeks, make up one fourth of the population. Eastern Iranian languages are still spoken in Tajikistan. Current efforts include the replacement of Russian by Tajik as the language of government and higher education as well as the reduction of Russian and Uzbek elements in Tajik.