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 | 319,632 | 93.63% | 363,563 | 90.65% |
| Spanish | 5,510 | 1.61% | 15,313 | 3.82% |
| Other Indo-European* | 9,100 | 2.67% | 10,488 | 2.62% |
| Asian Language** | 5,839 | 1.71% | 10,179 | 2.54% |
| Other | 1,303 | 0.38% | 1,515 | 0.38% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 341,384 | 100.00% | 401,058 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 7,173 | 46.84% |
| Other Indo-European* | 2,385 | 22.74% |
| Asian Language** | 5,289 | 51.96% |
| Other Language | 436 | 28.78% |
| Total | 15,283 | 3.81% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 1,707 | 30.98% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,924 | 21.14% |
| Asian Language** | 3,123 | 53.49% |
| Other Language | 350 | 26.86% |
| Total | 7,104 | 2.08% |
* "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