CensusScope is a product of the Social Science Data Analysis Network.
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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 | 119,581 | 97.58% | 130,983 | 96.07% |
| Spanish | 1,587 | 1.29% | 3,863 | 2.83% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,120 | 0.91% | 902 | 0.66% |
| Asian Language** | 227 | 0.19% | 438 | 0.32% |
| Other | 35 | 0.03% | 155 | 0.11% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 122,550 | 100.00% | 136,341 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 2,367 | 61.27% |
| Other Indo-European* | 260 | 28.82% |
| Asian Language** | 220 | 50.23% |
| Other Language | 88 | 56.77% |
| Total | 2,935 | 2.15% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 590 | 37.18% |
| Other Indo-European* | 295 | 26.34% |
| Asian Language** | 56 | 24.67% |
| Other Language | 12 | 34.29% |
| Total | 953 | 0.78% |
* "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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