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 | 331,807 | 95.30% | 337,767 | 96.26% |
| Spanish | 2,183 | 0.63% | 3,503 | 1.00% |
| Other Indo-European* | 12,807 | 3.68% | 7,857 | 2.24% |
| Asian Language** | 702 | 0.20% | 1,313 | 0.37% |
| Other | 686 | 0.20% | 453 | 0.13% |
| Total Population Age 5+ | 348,185 | 100.00% | 350,893 | 100.00% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 1,275 | 36.40% |
| Other Indo-European* | 1,963 | 24.98% |
| Asian Language** | 632 | 48.13% |
| Other Language | 107 | 23.62% |
| Total | 3,977 | 1.13% |
| Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990 | ||
| Language Spoken at Home: | Number | Percent |
| Spanish | 661 | 30.28% |
| Other Indo-European* | 3,374 | 26.34% |
| Asian Language** | 354 | 50.43% |
| Other Language | 226 | 32.94% |
| Total | 4,615 | 1.33% |
* "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