Wasco County
LANGUAGE
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 |
18,730 |
92.72% |
19,928 |
89.52% |
Spanish |
1,019 |
5.04% |
1,855 |
8.33% |
Other Indo-European* |
227 |
1.12% |
239 |
1.07% |
Asian Language** |
88 |
0.44% |
87 |
0.39% |
Other |
136 |
0.67% |
151 |
0.68% |
Total Population Age 5+ |
20,200 |
100.00% |
22,260 |
100.00% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
1,008 |
54.34% |
Other Indo-European* |
41 |
17.15% |
Asian Language** |
69 |
79.31% |
Other Language |
29 |
19.21% |
Total |
1,147 |
5.15% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
535 |
52.50% |
Other Indo-European* |
82 |
36.12% |
Asian Language** |
23 |
26.14% |
Other Language |
16 |
11.76% |
Total |
656 |
3.25% |
* "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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