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 | 12,518 | 95.64% | 17,471 | 93.90% |
| Spanish | 217 | 1.66% | 523 | 2.81% |
| Other Indo-European* | 321 | 2.45% | 496 | 2.67% |
| Asian Language** | 25 | 0.19% | 115 | 0.62% |
| Other | 8 | 0.06% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 13,089 | 100.00% | 18,605 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 233 | 44.55% |
| Other Indo-European* | 110 | 22.18% |
| Asian Language** | 50 | 43.48% |
| Other Language | 0 | - |
| Total | 393 | 2.11% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 83 | 38.25% |
| Other Indo-European* | 109 | 33.96% |
| Asian Language** | 16 | 64.00% |
| Other Language | 2 | 25.00% |
| Total | 210 | 1.60% |
* "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