The Census asks questions about language use at home to locate groups of people who speak a language other than English. Their isolation or integration into a primarily English speaking community can be determined by their ability to speak English proficiently.
| Language Spoken at Home, 1990-2000 | ||||
| 1990 | 2000 | |||
| Number | Percent | Number | Percent | |
| Only English | 216,443 | 95.40% | 211,694 | 95.98% |
| Spanish | 1,593 | 0.70% | 2,731 | 1.24% |
| Other Indo-European* | 8,261 | 3.64% | 5,086 | 2.31% |
| Asian Language** | 163 | 0.07% | 612 | 0.28% |
| Other | 427 | 0.19% | 434 | 0.20% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 226,887 | 100.00% | 220,557 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 976 | 35.74% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,499 | 29.47% |
| Asian Language** | 342 | 55.88% |
| Other Language | 101 | 23.27% |
| Total | 2,918 | 1.32% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 488 | 30.63% |
| Other Indo-European* | 2,364 | 28.62% |
| Asian Language** | 68 | 41.72% |
| Other Language | 141 | 33.02% |
| Total | 3,061 | 1.35% |
* "Other Indo-European" excludes English and Spanish. "Indo-European" is not synonymous with "European." French, German, Hindi, and Persian are all classified as Indo-European. Hungarian, on the other hand, is lumped into "Other Language."
** "Asian Language" includes languages indigenous to Asia and Pacific islands areas that are not also Indo-European languages. Chinese, Japanese, Telugu, and Hawaiian are all classified here.
Also note that ability to speak English "very well" is based on the self-assessment of those responding to Census questions, not on a test of language ability.
Source: Census 2000 analyzed by the Social Science Data Analysis Network (SSDAN).
Home | About | Help | Contact | Use Policy