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 | 244,918 | 94.39% | 286,210 | 90.43% |
| Spanish | 5,299 | 2.04% | 13,853 | 4.38% |
| Other Indo-European* | 5,869 | 2.26% | 9,720 | 3.07% |
| Asian Language** | 2,696 | 1.04% | 5,635 | 1.78% |
| Other | 695 | 0.27% | 1,098 | 0.35% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 259,477 | 100.00% | 316,516 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 6,677 | 48.20% |
| Other Indo-European* | 3,434 | 35.33% |
| Asian Language** | 2,531 | 44.92% |
| Other Language | 368 | 33.52% |
| Total | 13,010 | 4.11% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 2,248 | 42.42% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,430 | 24.37% |
| Asian Language** | 1,180 | 43.77% |
| Other Language | 167 | 24.03% |
| Total | 5,025 | 1.94% |
* "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