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 | 34,972 | 96.39% | 37,986 | 95.49% |
| Spanish | 824 | 2.27% | 1,053 | 2.65% |
| Other Indo-European* | 398 | 1.10% | 467 | 1.17% |
| Asian Language** | 82 | 0.23% | 172 | 0.43% |
| Other | 4 | 0.01% | 101 | 0.25% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 36,280 | 100.00% | 39,779 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 303 | 28.77% |
| Other Indo-European* | 97 | 20.77% |
| Asian Language** | 82 | 47.67% |
| Other Language | 34 | 33.66% |
| Total | 516 | 1.30% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 301 | 36.53% |
| Other Indo-European* | 70 | 17.59% |
| Asian Language** | 19 | 23.17% |
| Other Language | 2 | 50.00% |
| Total | 392 | 1.08% |
* "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