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 | 37,349 | 81.78% | 40,583 | 84.61% |
| Spanish | 484 | 1.06% | 621 | 1.29% |
| Other Indo-European* | 7,585 | 16.61% | 6,369 | 13.28% |
| Asian Language** | 227 | 0.50% | 291 | 0.61% |
| Other | 27 | 0.06% | 100 | 0.21% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 45,672 | 100.00% | 47,964 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 159 | 25.60% |
| Other Indo-European* | 2,423 | 38.04% |
| Asian Language** | 98 | 33.68% |
| Other Language | 22 | 22.00% |
| Total | 2,702 | 5.63% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 128 | 26.45% |
| Other Indo-European* | 3,157 | 41.62% |
| Asian Language** | 54 | 23.79% |
| Other Language | 7 | 25.93% |
| Total | 3,346 | 7.33% |
* "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