E.g., 04/18/2024
E.g., 04/18/2024
State Language Data - OK
 

Oklahoma

Language & Education
2022
2000
1990
English Proficiency

Note: The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English.

Note: The term "foreign born" refers to people residing in the United States at the time of the population survey who were not U.S. citizens at birth. The foreign-born population includes naturalized U.S. citizens, lawful permanent immigrants (or green-card holders), refugees and asylees, certain legal nonimmigrants (including those on student, work, or some other temporary visas), and persons residing in the country without authorization.

Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 240,784
Speak only English 15.4%
Speak English "very well" 35.6%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 49.0%
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Population: Change over Time  
% change: 2000-2022 80.9%
% change: 1990-2000 178.4%
English Proficiency of the Foreign Born by U.S. Citizenship Status (age 5 and older)*

Note: The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English. Data for Alaska, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the Census Bureau's pooled 2018-2022 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2022 ACS.

 
Naturalized citizens 96,794
Speak only English 23.5%
Speak English "very well" 42%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 34.5%
Noncitizens 143,990
Speak only English 9.9%
Speak English "very well" 31.4%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 58.7%

Note: The term "U.S. born" refers to people residing in the United States who were U.S. citizens in one of three categories: people born in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia; people born in U.S. Insular Areas such as Puerto Rico or Guam; or people who were born abroad to at least one U.S. citizen parent.

U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 3,538,843
Speak only English 94.0%
Speak English ""very well"" 5.0%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 0.9%
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Population: Change over Time  
% change: 2000-2011 -1.6%
% change: 1990-2000 20.6%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 129,664
Speak only English 17.3%
"Speak English ""very well"" 32.4%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 50.3%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 3,086,055
Speak only English 95.7%
"Speak English ""very well"" 3.2%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1.1%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 63,588
Speak only English 26.7%
"Speak English ""very well"" 36.5%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 36.8%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 2,850,524
Speak only English 96.5%
"Speak English ""very well"" 2.5%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1.0%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
Population (age 5 and older)
 
 
Language Spoken at Home (by age and English proficiency)

Note: The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English.

Number
Ages 5-17 713,249
Speak only English 626,247
Speak language other than English 87,002
Speak English "very well"
69,171
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
17,831
Speak Spanish 71,643
Speak English "very well"
57,051
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
14,592
Ages 18-64 2,404,382
Speak only English 2,111,826
Speak language other than English 292,556
Speak English "very well"
174,624
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
117,932
Speak Spanish 202,920
Speak English "very well"
116,035
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
86,885
65 and Older 661,996
Speak only English 626,950
Speak language other than English 35,046
Speak English "very well"
19,604
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
15,442
Speak Spanish 18,701
Speak English "very well"
10,381
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
8,320
%
65 and Older 100%
Speak only English 87.8%
Speak language other than English 12.2%
Speak English "very well" 9.7%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 2.5%
Speak Spanish 10.0%
Speak English "very well" 8.0%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 2.0%
Ages 18-64 100%
Speak only English 87.8%
Speak language other than English 12.2%
Speak English "very well" 7.3%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 4.9%
Speak Spanish 8.4%
Speak English "very well" 4.8%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 3.6%
Ages 5-17 100%
Speak only English 94.7%
Speak language other than English 5.3%
Speak English "very well" 3.0%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 2.3%
Speak Spanish 2.8%
Speak English "very well" 1.6%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 1.3%
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
Population (age 5 and older)
 
 
Language Spoken at Home (detailed, by English proficiency)

Note: 1) The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English. 2) Data for Alaska, Arkansas, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the U.S. Census Bureau's pooled 2018-2022 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2022 ACS.

Number
Total Household Population, Age 5 and Older 3,779,627
Speak only English 3,365,023
Speak language other than English 414,604
Spanish 293,264
Speak English "very well" 183,467
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 109,797
French (Including Cajun) 3,867
Speak English "very well" 2,926
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 941
Haitian 23
Speak English "very well" 23
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) N
Italian 959
Speak English "very well" 727
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 232
Portuguese 2,151
Speak English "very well" 1,563
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 588
German 7,411
Speak English "very well" 6,602
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 809
Yiddish, Pennsylvania Dutch or Other West Germanic Languages 1,220
Speak English "very well" 1,078
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 142
Russian 1,772
Speak English "very well" 1,304
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 468
Polish 872
Speak English "very well" 734
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 138
Other Slavic Languages 920
Speak English "very well" 797
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 123
Armenian 179
Speak English "very well" 139
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 40
Persian (including Farsi, Dari) 2,496
Speak English "very well" 1,258
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,238
Gujarati 1,362
Speak English "very well" 1,161
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 201
Hindi 1,462
Speak English "very well" 1,308
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 154
Urdu 2,063
Speak English "very well" 1,682
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 381
Punjabi 488
Speak English "very well" 213
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 275
Bengali 1,826
Speak English "very well" 748
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,078
Nepali, Marathi, or Other Indic Languages 1,649
Speak English "very well" 1,076
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 573
Other Indo-European Languages 3,216
Speak English "very well" 2,123
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,093
Telugu 1,773
Speak English "very well" 1,485
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 288
Tamil 307
Speak English "very well" 286
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 21
Malayalam, Kannada, or Other Dravidian Languages 3,383
Speak English "very well" 1,811
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,572
Chinese (including Mandarin, Cantonese) 11,495
Speak English "very well" 6,873
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 4,622
Japanese 1,461
Speak English "very well" 1,041
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 420
Korean 3,083
Speak English "very well" 1,818
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,265
Hmong 7,165
Speak English "very well" 4,679
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 2,486
Vietnamese 15,549
Speak English "very well" 4,954
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 10,595
Khmer 524
Speak English "very well" 293
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 231
Thai, Lao, or Other Tai-Kadai Languages 3,141
Speak English "very well" 1,694
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,447
Other Languages of Asia 4,505
Speak English "very well" 1,752
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 2,753
Tagalog (including Filipino) 4,353
Speak English "very well" 2,944
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,409
Ilocano, Samoan, Hawaiian, or Other Austronesian Languages 3,420
Speak English "very well" 2,526
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 894
Arabic 6,557
Speak English "very well" 4,840
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,717
Hebrew 497
Speak English "very well" 423
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 74
Amharic, Somali, or Other Afro-Asiatic Languages 1,580
Speak English "very well" 1,355
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 225
Yoruba, Twi, Igbo, or Other Languages of Western Africa 3,807
Speak English "very well" 3,611
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 196
Swahili or Other Languages of Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa 2,248
Speak English "very well" 1,481
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 767
Native Languages of North America 10,539
Speak English "very well" 8,986
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,553
Other and Unspecified Languages 2,017
Speak English "very well" 1,618
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 399
%
Field 306 100%
Field 307 89.0%
Field 308 11.0%
Field 310 100%
Field 310 62.6%
Field 310 37.4%
Field 313 100%
Field 314 75.7%
Field 315 24.3%
Field 316 100%
Field 316 100.0%
Field 316 N
Field 319 100%
Field 319 75.8%
Field 319 24.2%
Field 322 100%
Field 322 72.7%
Field 322 27.3%
Field 325 100%
Field 325 89.1%
Field 325 10.9%
Field 328 100%
Field 328 88.4%
Field 328 11.6%
Field 331 100%
Field 331 73.6%
Field 331 26.4%
Field 334 100%
Field 334 84.2%
Field 334 15.8%
Field 337 100%
Field 337 86.6%
Field 337 13.4%
Field 340 100%
Field 340 77.7%
Field 340 22.3%
Field 343 100%
Field 343 50.4%
Field 343 49.6%
Field 346 100%
Field 346 85.2%
Field 346 14.8%
Field 349 100%
Field 349 89.5%
Field 349 10.5%
Field 352 100%
Field 352 81.5%
Field 352 18.5%
Field 355 100%
Field 355 43.6%
Field 355 56.4%
Field 358 100%
Field 358 41.0%
Field 358 59.0%
Field 361 100%
Field 361 65.3%
Field 361 34.7%
Field 364 100%
Field 364 66.0%
Field 364 34.0%
Field 367 100%
Field 367 83.8%
Field 367 16.2%
Field 370 100%
Field 370 93.2%
Field 370 6.8%
Field 373 100%
Field 373 53.5%
Field 373 46.5%
Field 376 100%
Field 376 59.8%
Field 376 40.2%
Field 379 100%
Field 379 71.3%
Field 379 28.7%
Field 382 100%
Field 382 59.0%
Field 382 41.0%
Field 385 100%
Field 385 65.3%
Field 385 34.7%
Field 388 100%
Field 388 31.9%
Field 388 68.1%
Field 391 100%
Field 391 55.9%
Field 391 44.1%
Field 394 100%
Field 394 53.9%
Field 394 46.1%
Field 397 100%
Field 397 38.9%
Field 397 61.1%
Field 400 100%
Field 400 67.6%
Field 400 32.4%
Field 403 100%
Field 403 73.9%
Field 403 26.1%
Field 406 100%
Field 406 73.8%
Field 406 26.2%
Field 409 100%
Field 409 85.1%
Field 409 14.9%
Field 412 100%
Field 412 85.8%
Field 412 14.2%
Field 415 100%
Field 415 94.9%
Field 415 5.1%
Field 418 100%
Field 418 65.9%
Field 418 34.1%
Field 421 100%
Field 421 85.3%
Field 421 14.7%
Field 424 100%
Field 424 80.2%
Field 424 19.8%
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Educational Attainment Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 206,891
Less than high school diploma 33.3%
High school diploma or GED 24.8%
Some college or associate's degree 17.6%
Bachelor's degree 13.8%
Graduate or professional degree 10.4%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 24.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher 6.6%
Educational Attainment: Change over Time  
Adults with no high school diploma  
% change: 2000-2022 90.4%
% change: 1990-2000 123.8%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher  
% change: 2000-2022 134.7%
% change: 1990-2000 62.3%
Educational Attainment by U.S. Citizenship Status (foreign-born adults, age 25 and older)

Note: 1) Data for Alaska, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the U.S. Census Bureau's pooled 2018-2022 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2022 ACS. 2) The letter N Indicates that a number could not be provided by the Census Bureau because the number of sample cases was too small for this state.

 
Naturalized citizens (%) 87,690
Less than high school diploma 21.1%
High school diploma or GED 23.1%
Some college or associate's degree 21.5%
Bachelor's degree 19.8%
Graduate or professional degree 14.5%
Noncitizens (%) 119,201
Less than high school diploma 42.3%
High school diploma or GED 26.1%
Some college or associate's degree 14.8%
Bachelor's degree 9.4%
Graduate or professional degree 7.4%
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 2,454,250
Less than high school diploma 8.5%
High school diploma or GED 31.1%
Some college or associate's degree 31.6%
Bachelor's degree 19.0%
Graduate or professional degree 9.9%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Nothing  
Nothing  
Educational Attainment: Change over Time  
Adults with no high school diploma  
% change: 2000-2011 -46.9%
% change: 1990-2000 -20.6%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher  
% change: 2000-2011 67.3%
% change: 1990-2000 24.6%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 92,075
Less than high school diploma 39.3%
High school diploma or GED 19.4%
Some college or associate's degree 18.0%
Bachelor's degree 12.6%
Graduate or professional degree 10.6%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 8.4%
Bachelor's degree or higher 4.8%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 2,109,077
Less than high school diploma 18.6%
High school diploma or GED 32.2%
Some college or associate's degree 29.1%
Bachelor's degree 13.4%
Graduate or professional degree 6.7%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 49,487
Less than high school diploma 32.7%
High school diploma or GED 20.0%
Some college or associate's degree 20.6%
Bachelor's degree 13.9%
Graduate or professional degree 12.7%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 3.2%
Bachelor's degree or higher 3.7%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 1,940,646
Less than high school diploma 25.5%
High school diploma or GED 30.6%
Some college or associate's degree 26.4%
Bachelor's degree 11.8%
Graduate or professional degree 5.8%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Sources: Migration Policy Institute tabulations of the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) and Decennial Census. Unless stated otherwise, 2022 data are from the one-year ACS file. For information about ACS definitions, click here. For ACS methodology, sampling error, and nonsampling error, click here. Estimates from 1990 and 2000 Decennial Census data as well as ACS microdata are from Steven Ruggles, Sarah Flood, Matthew Sobek, Daniel Backman, Annie Chen, Grace Cooper, Stephanie Richards, Renae Rogers, and Megan Schouweiler. IPUMS USA: Version 14.0 [dataset]. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2023. https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V14.0​.

Definitions

  • The term "foreign born" refers to people residing in the United States at the time of the population survey who were not U.S. citizens at birth. The foreign-born population includes naturalized U.S. citizens, lawful permanent immigrants (or green-card holders), refugees and asylees, certain legal nonimmigrants (including those on student, work, or some other temporary visas), and persons residing in the country without authorization.
  • The term "U.S. born" refers to people residing in the United States who were U.S. citizens in one of three categories: people born in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia; people born in U.S. Insular Areas such as Puerto Rico or Guam; or people who were born abroad to at least one U.S. citizen parent.
  • The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English “not at all,” “not well,” or “well” on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English “very well” are considered proficient in English.

Data-related notes

  • The letter N indicates that an estimate could not be provided by the Census Bureau because the number of sample cases was too small for this state.
  • For “English proficiency of the foreign born by U.S. citizenship status” and “Educational Attainment by U.S. Citizenship Status”: Data for Alaska, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the Census Bureau's pooled 2018-2022 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2022 ACS. 
  • For “Language Spoken at Home (detailed, by English proficiency)”: Data for Alaska, Arkansas, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the U.S. Census Bureau's pooled 2018-2022 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2022 ACS.