Alabama
LANGUAGE
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 |
3,651,936 |
97.13% |
3,989,795 |
96.09% |
Spanish |
42,653 |
1.13% |
89,729 |
2.16% |
Other Indo-European* |
44,985 |
1.20% |
43,812 |
1.06% |
Asian Language** |
15,842 |
0.42% |
22,122 |
0.53% |
Other |
4,386 |
0.12% |
6,820 |
0.16% |
Total Population Age 5+ |
3,759,802 |
100.00% |
4,152,278 |
100.00% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
40,299 |
44.91% |
Other Indo-European* |
11,225 |
25.62% |
Asian Language** |
10,546 |
47.67% |
Other Language |
1,847 |
27.08% |
Total |
63,917 |
1.54% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
14,168 |
33.22% |
Other Indo-European* |
12,731 |
28.30% |
Asian Language** |
7,920 |
49.99% |
Other Language |
1,199 |
27.34% |
Total |
36,018 |
0.96% |
* "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