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 | 231,054 | 94.89% | 257,796 | 93.19% |
| Spanish | 4,608 | 1.89% | 7,669 | 2.77% |
| Other Indo-European* | 4,335 | 1.78% | 5,523 | 2.00% |
| Asian Language** | 3,229 | 1.33% | 5,010 | 1.81% |
| Other | 270 | 0.11% | 631 | 0.23% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 243,496 | 100.00% | 276,629 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 2,394 | 31.22% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,504 | 27.23% |
| Asian Language** | 2,028 | 40.48% |
| Other Language | 182 | 28.84% |
| Total | 6,108 | 2.21% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 1,427 | 30.97% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,078 | 24.87% |
| Asian Language** | 1,456 | 45.09% |
| Other Language | 103 | 38.15% |
| Total | 4,064 | 1.67% |
* "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