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 | 238,850 | 96.36% | 259,565 | 90.83% |
| Spanish | 3,418 | 1.38% | 19,294 | 6.75% |
| Other Indo-European* | 4,207 | 1.70% | 4,026 | 1.41% |
| Asian Language** | 1,056 | 0.43% | 2,353 | 0.82% |
| Other | 346 | 0.14% | 524 | 0.18% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 247,877 | 100.00% | 285,762 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 12,913 | 66.93% |
| Other Indo-European* | 969 | 24.07% |
| Asian Language** | 1,158 | 49.21% |
| Other Language | 140 | 26.72% |
| Total | 15,180 | 5.31% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 1,239 | 36.25% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,245 | 29.59% |
| Asian Language** | 557 | 52.75% |
| Other Language | 114 | 32.95% |
| Total | 3,155 | 1.27% |
* "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