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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 |
143,599 |
93.02% |
152,149 |
91.71% |
Spanish |
3,681 |
2.38% |
5,951 |
3.59% |
Other Indo-European* |
4,033 |
2.61% |
3,981 |
2.40% |
Asian Language** |
2,932 |
1.90% |
3,343 |
2.02% |
Other |
128 |
0.08% |
473 |
0.29% |
Total Population Age 5+ |
154,373 |
100.00% |
165,897 |
100.00% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
1,702 |
28.60% |
Other Indo-European* |
1,028 |
25.82% |
Asian Language** |
1,865 |
55.79% |
Other Language |
129 |
27.27% |
Total |
4,724 |
2.85% |
Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990
|
Language Spoken at Home: |
Number |
Percent |
Spanish |
1,013 |
27.52% |
Other Indo-European* |
1,145 |
28.39% |
Asian Language** |
1,461 |
49.83% |
Other Language |
18 |
14.06% |
Total |
3,637 |
2.36% |
* "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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