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 Washington


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

Island 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 51,353 92.89% 61,301 91.77%
Spanish 1,235 2.23% 1,628 2.44%
Other Indo-European* 1,187 2.15% 1,379 2.06%
Asian Language** 1,442 2.61% 2,296 3.44%
Other 66 0.12% 192 0.29%
Total Population Age 5+ 55,283 100.00% 66,796 100.00%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000
Language Spoken at Home: Number Percent
Spanish 420 25.80%
Other Indo-European* 259 18.78%
Asian Language** 954 41.55%
Other Language 54 28.13%
Total 1,687 2.53%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990
Language Spoken at Home: Number Percent
Spanish 262 21.21%
Other Indo-European* 317 26.71%
Asian Language** 608 42.16%
Other Language 0 -
Total 1,187 2.15%

* "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