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 | 579,017 | 93.55% | 654,825 | 90.55% |
| Spanish | 16,771 | 2.71% | 29,719 | 4.11% |
| Other Indo-European* | 12,505 | 2.02% | 19,071 | 2.64% |
| Asian Language** | 7,929 | 1.28% | 14,937 | 2.07% |
| Other | 2,711 | 0.44% | 4,646 | 0.64% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 618,933 | 100.00% | 723,198 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 9,516 | 32.02% |
| Other Indo-European* | 6,789 | 35.60% |
| Asian Language** | 6,394 | 42.81% |
| Other Language | 1,413 | 30.41% |
| Total | 24,112 | 3.33% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 4,814 | 28.70% |
| Other Indo-European* | 3,753 | 30.01% |
| Asian Language** | 3,043 | 38.38% |
| Other Language | 857 | 31.61% |
| Total | 12,467 | 2.01% |
* "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