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 | 31,058 | 95.46% | 34,579 | 94.76% |
| Spanish | 334 | 1.03% | 603 | 1.65% |
| Other Indo-European* | 716 | 2.20% | 650 | 1.78% |
| Asian Language** | 27 | 0.08% | 135 | 0.37% |
| Other | 401 | 1.23% | 526 | 1.44% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 32,536 | 100.00% | 36,493 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 141 | 23.38% |
| Other Indo-European* | 105 | 16.15% |
| Asian Language** | 75 | 55.56% |
| Other Language | 145 | 27.57% |
| Total | 466 | 1.28% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 109 | 32.63% |
| Other Indo-European* | 179 | 25.00% |
| Asian Language** | 15 | 55.56% |
| Other Language | 106 | 26.43% |
| Total | 409 | 1.26% |
* "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).
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