Census Trend Charts Demographic Maps Rankings & Comparisons Segregation Data  

Zoom in and out of geography at levels: US, States or Metro Areas, and Counties within States.

You can zoom out to Tennessee


Visit the SSDAN Web Site
CensusScope is a product of the Social Science Data Analysis Network.

Knox County

Print-Friendly Version

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 304,022 96.65% 342,926 95.56%
Spanish 3,142 1.00% 6,068 1.69%
Other Indo-European* 4,486 1.43% 5,485 1.53%
Asian Language** 2,116 0.67% 3,220 0.90%
Other 805 0.26% 1,160 0.32%
Total Population Age 5+ 314,571 100.00% 358,859 100.00%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000
Language Spoken at Home: Number Percent
Spanish 2,114 34.84%
Other Indo-European* 1,420 25.89%
Asian Language** 1,321 41.02%
Other Language 342 29.48%
Total 5,197 1.45%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990
Language Spoken at Home: Number Percent
Spanish 1,102 35.07%
Other Indo-European* 1,241 27.66%
Asian Language** 920 43.48%
Other Language 171 21.24%
Total 3,434 1.09%

* "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