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 | 36,490 | 63.90% | 56,904 | 68.24% |
| Spanish | 10,309 | 18.05% | 13,693 | 16.42% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,191 | 2.09% | 1,251 | 1.50% |
| Asian Language** | 223 | 0.39% | 417 | 0.50% |
| Other | 8,890 | 15.57% | 11,117 | 13.33% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 57,103 | 100.00% | 83,382 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 2,559 | 18.69% |
| Other Indo-European* | 259 | 20.70% |
| Asian Language** | 187 | 44.84% |
| Other Language | 4,348 | 39.11% |
| Total | 7,353 | 8.82% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 1,831 | 17.76% |
| Other Indo-European* | 271 | 22.75% |
| Asian Language** | 79 | 35.43% |
| Other Language | 4,240 | 47.69% |
| Total | 6,421 | 11.24% |
* "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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