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 | 205,453 | 94.18% | 247,516 | 92.44% |
| Spanish | 6,408 | 2.94% | 10,892 | 4.07% |
| Other Indo-European* | 4,025 | 1.85% | 5,175 | 1.93% |
| Asian Language** | 1,541 | 0.71% | 3,011 | 1.12% |
| Other | 718 | 0.33% | 1,171 | 0.44% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 218,145 | 100.00% | 267,765 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 3,561 | 32.69% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,097 | 21.20% |
| Asian Language** | 1,089 | 36.17% |
| Other Language | 206 | 17.59% |
| Total | 5,953 | 2.22% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 2,196 | 34.27% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,159 | 28.80% |
| Asian Language** | 753 | 48.86% |
| Other Language | 191 | 26.60% |
| Total | 4,299 | 1.97% |
* "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