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 | 15,187 | 98.43% | 16,596 | 97.56% |
| Spanish | 111 | 0.72% | 242 | 1.42% |
| Other Indo-European* | 122 | 0.79% | 81 | 0.48% |
| Asian Language** | 0 | 0.00% | 63 | 0.37% |
| Other | 9 | 0.06% | 29 | 0.17% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 15,429 | 100.00% | 17,011 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 122 | 50.41% |
| Other Indo-European* | 19 | 23.46% |
| Asian Language** | 47 | 74.60% |
| Other Language | 0 | 0.00% |
| Total | 188 | 1.11% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 38 | 34.23% |
| Other Indo-European* | 30 | 24.59% |
| Asian Language** | 0 | - |
| Other Language | 0 | - |
| Total | 68 | 0.44% |
* "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