Salem County
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 |
57,753 |
94.84% |
56,603 |
93.67% |
Spanish |
1,370 |
2.25% |
2,153 |
3.56% |
Other Indo-European* |
1,507 |
2.47% |
1,282 |
2.12% |
Asian Language** |
164 |
0.27% |
271 |
0.45% |
Other |
101 |
0.17% |
119 |
0.20% |
Total Population Age 5+ |
60,895 |
100.00% |
60,428 |
100.00% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
1,019 |
47.33% |
Other Indo-European* |
377 |
29.41% |
Asian Language** |
144 |
53.14% |
Other Language |
58 |
48.74% |
Total |
1,598 |
2.64% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
532 |
38.83% |
Other Indo-European* |
460 |
30.52% |
Asian Language** |
100 |
60.98% |
Other Language |
12 |
11.88% |
Total |
1,104 |
1.81% |
* "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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