The first school in Goriška Brda was established in 1826 in Kojsko. Until then the predominant part of the population was illiterate. There are two areas of research selected, namely the current parish of Kojsko and the parish of Kožbana, where a school was founded in 1870. Based on the signatures of godfathers in the parish book, the author has attempted to determine the impact of literacy rate in the parish, and to determine the differences in the proportion of literacy among women and men. Among the lower classes the knowledge of reading and writing meant prestige, which they were unable to gain due to the labor for survival and all the school-related expenses. In the first half of the 19th century only children from wealthy families, particularly firstborns or boys who were the main heirs and remained therefore on the farm, were being educated. Girls were even rarely educated; meant are primarily families of big landowners and officials. Most of these children were being taught by private teachers, while girls attended the school in Gorizia governed by Ursuline Sisters. Just a few gifted students had the opportunity to improve their knowledge at the normal school in Gorizia. The high social status of these individuals mirrored in important positions they had in society as mayors and notaries at inventory of property and wills.