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 | 15,859 | 98.71% | 18,923 | 97.50% |
| Spanish | 139 | 0.87% | 321 | 1.65% |
| Other Indo-European* | 33 | 0.21% | 153 | 0.79% |
| Asian Language** | 13 | 0.08% | 11 | 0.06% |
| Other | 23 | 0.14% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 16,067 | 100.00% | 19,408 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 174 | 54.21% |
| Other Indo-European* | 56 | 36.60% |
| Asian Language** | 3 | 27.27% |
| Other Language | 0 | - |
| Total | 233 | 1.20% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 30 | 21.58% |
| Other Indo-European* | 15 | 45.45% |
| Asian Language** | 2 | 15.38% |
| Other Language | 8 | 34.78% |
| Total | 55 | 0.34% |
* "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