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 | 391,652 | 64.70% | 433,491 | 59.19% |
| Spanish | 156,144 | 25.79% | 230,401 | 31.46% |
| Other Indo-European* | 18,649 | 3.08% | 19,551 | 2.67% |
| Asian Language** | 36,828 | 6.08% | 45,275 | 6.18% |
| Other | 2,090 | 0.35% | 3,704 | 0.51% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 605,363 | 100.00% | 732,422 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 115,594 | 50.17% |
| Other Indo-European* | 7,448 | 38.10% |
| Asian Language** | 27,188 | 60.05% |
| Other Language | 1,441 | 38.90% |
| Total | 151,671 | 20.71% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 76,312 | 48.87% |
| Other Indo-European* | 5,861 | 31.43% |
| Asian Language** | 26,654 | 72.37% |
| Other Language | 988 | 47.27% |
| Total | 109,815 | 18.14% |
* "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