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 | 2,569,463 | 94.08% | 3,298,600 | 86.69% |
| Spanish | 63,426 | 2.32% | 262,590 | 6.90% |
| Other Indo-European* | 53,189 | 1.95% | 121,441 | 3.19% |
| Asian Language** | 34,425 | 1.26% | 88,454 | 2.32% |
| Other | 10,568 | 0.39% | 34,103 | 0.90% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 2,731,071 | 100.00% | 3,805,188 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 157,652 | 60.04% |
| Other Indo-European* | 40,064 | 32.99% |
| Asian Language** | 49,951 | 56.47% |
| Other Language | 10,196 | 29.90% |
| Total | 257,863 | 6.78% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 26,013 | 41.01% |
| Other Indo-European* | 14,497 | 27.26% |
| Asian Language** | 20,320 | 59.03% |
| Other Language | 2,527 | 23.91% |
| Total | 63,357 | 2.32% |
* "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