Editing Reading and writing (section)

===Individual cultures===
[[File:Rodrik and Alannys Harlaw by gotheyjoy.jpg|thumb|300px|[[Rodrik Harlaw]], nicknamed "the Reader" for his love of reading, with his sister [[Alannys Harlaw|Alannys]] by gotheyjoy]]
The [[Mazemakers]], an ancient people who lived on the islands of [[Lorath]], left no written record.{{Ref|TWOIAF|Lorath}}

[[Yi Ti]] was one of the first places where men achieved civilization and literacy. The wise men of Yi Ti were reading and writing for many thousands of years. They kept ancient records that are cherished and venerated but also jealously guarded by their scholars. Some scattered texts have escaped Yi Ti and reached the [[Citadel]].{{Ref|TWOIAF|The Bones and Beyond: Yi Ti}}

The people of the [[Iron Islands]] did not learn how to write until thousands of years after the time of [[Balon Blackskin]], who supposedly lived during the [[Age of Heroes]]. Even after [[Ironborn|ironmen]] first learned to write, literacy remained rare in the Iron Islands. Those who possess the ability to write are often mocked as weaklings or feared as [[sorcerer]]s. Thus, much of the written history of their people comes from the victims of ironborn raids and was written in the [[Old Tongue]] or the runes of the First Men. However, their [[Priest of the Drowned God|priests]] of the [[Drowned God]] have oral traditions, passing knowledge from elder to younger. Those taken as [[thrall]]s who could read and write would serve their masters as [[steward]]s, [[tutor]]s, and [[scribe]]s.{{Ref|TWOIAF|The Iron Islands}} [[Harmund I Hoare]], known as Harmund the Host, was the first [[King of the Iron Islands]] known to be literate, and he treasured books. His son [[Harmund II Hoare]], called Harmund the Haggler, shared his father's love of reading.{{Ref|TWOIAF|The Iron Islands: The Black Blood}} Even in the present day, a great many ironborn still consider reading unmanly and perverse.{{Ref|AFFC|11}}

The priestesses of [[Tall Trees Town]] on [[Walano]] in the [[Summer Isles]] carve songs and stories into the trunks of the enormous tower tree that shade the town. The carvings on the [[Talking Trees]] record the whole history of the Summer Islanders, as well as the commandments of their gods and the laws by which they live.{{Ref|TWOIAF|Beyond the Free Cities: The Summer Isles}}