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 | 162,908 | 93.22% | 197,334 | 93.23% |
| Spanish | 1,706 | 0.98% | 2,921 | 1.38% |
| Other Indo-European* | 9,298 | 5.32% | 10,203 | 4.82% |
| Asian Language** | 489 | 0.28% | 715 | 0.34% |
| Other | 348 | 0.20% | 480 | 0.23% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 174,749 | 100.00% | 211,653 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 778 | 26.63% |
| Other Indo-European* | 3,274 | 32.09% |
| Asian Language** | 294 | 41.12% |
| Other Language | 65 | 13.54% |
| Total | 4,411 | 2.08% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 528 | 30.95% |
| Other Indo-European* | 2,553 | 27.46% |
| Asian Language** | 221 | 45.19% |
| Other Language | 69 | 19.83% |
| Total | 3,371 | 1.93% |
* "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