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 | 27,098 | 98.74% | 30,800 | 97.60% |
| Spanish | 124 | 0.45% | 417 | 1.32% |
| Other Indo-European* | 199 | 0.73% | 257 | 0.81% |
| Asian Language** | 13 | 0.05% | 72 | 0.23% |
| Other | 9 | 0.03% | 10 | 0.03% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 27,443 | 100.00% | 31,556 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 134 | 32.13% |
| Other Indo-European* | 62 | 24.12% |
| Asian Language** | 17 | 23.61% |
| Other Language | 0 | 0.00% |
| Total | 213 | 0.67% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 49 | 39.52% |
| Other Indo-European* | 20 | 10.05% |
| Asian Language** | 0 | - |
| Other Language | 0 | - |
| Total | 69 | 0.25% |
* "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).
Home | About | Help | Contact | Use Policy