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 | 991,808 | 65.65% | 980,578 | 59.71% |
| Spanish | 171,544 | 11.35% | 232,018 | 14.13% |
| Other Indo-European* | 89,943 | 5.95% | 109,113 | 6.64% |
| Asian Language** | 244,410 | 16.18% | 304,308 | 18.53% |
| Other | 13,147 | 0.87% | 16,150 | 0.98% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 1,510,852 | 100.00% | 1,642,167 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 122,993 | 53.01% |
| Other Indo-European* | 34,425 | 31.55% |
| Asian Language** | 166,402 | 54.68% |
| Other Language | 4,840 | 29.97% |
| Total | 328,660 | 20.01% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 87,961 | 51.28% |
| Other Indo-European* | 28,498 | 31.68% |
| Asian Language** | 139,952 | 57.26% |
| Other Language | 4,225 | 32.14% |
| Total | 260,636 | 17.25% |
* "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).
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