E.g., 04/19/2024
E.g., 04/19/2024
State Language Data - ND
 

North Dakota

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) (%) 38,054
Speak only English 36.3%
Speak English "very well" 36.3%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 27.3%
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Population: Change over Time  
% change: 2000-2022 257.9%
% change: 1990-2000 43.3%
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 15,142
Speak only English 27.5%
Speak English "very well" 46.4%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 26.1%
Noncitizens 20,383
Speak only English 32.9%
Speak English "very well" 35.9%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 31.2%

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) (%) 693,363
Speak only English 96.0%
Speak English ""very well"" 3.0%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1.0%
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Population: Change over Time  
% change: 2000-2011 -11.7%
% change: 1990-2000 -27.4%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 11,919
Speak only English 44.0%
"Speak English ""very well"" 31.6%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 24.4%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 591,187
Speak only English 94.7%
"Speak English ""very well"" 3.9%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1.4%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 9,590
Speak only English 48.1%
"Speak English ""very well"" 30.8%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 21.2%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 578,600
Speak only English 92.5%
"Speak English ""very well"" 5.6%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1.9%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
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 5-17 133,121
Speak only English 123,871
Speak language other than English 9,250
Speak English "very well"
7,148
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
2,102
Speak Spanish 4,532
Speak English "very well"
3,620
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
912
Ages 18-64 468,003
Speak only English 431,142
Speak language other than English 36,861
Speak English "very well"
22,974
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
13,887
Speak Spanish 11,773
Speak English "very well"
7,298
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
4,475
65 and Older 130,293
Speak only English 124,356
Speak language other than English 5,937
Speak English "very well"
4,375
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
1,562
Speak Spanish 802
Speak English "very well"
585
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
217
%
65 and Older 100%
Speak only English 93.1%
Speak language other than English 6.9%
Speak English "very well" 5.4%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 1.6%
Speak Spanish 3.4%
Speak English "very well" 2.7%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 0.7%
Ages 18-64 100%
Speak only English 92.1%
Speak language other than English 7.9%
Speak English "very well" 4.9%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 3.0%
Speak Spanish 2.5%
Speak English "very well" 1.6%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 1.0%
Ages 5-17 100%
Speak only English 95.4%
Speak language other than English 4.6%
Speak English "very well" 3.4%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 1.2%
Speak Spanish 0.6%
Speak English "very well" 0.4%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 0.2%
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
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 725,157
Speak only English 676,931
Speak language other than English 48,226
Spanish 14,418
Speak English "very well" 10,300
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 4,118
French (Including Cajun) 2,248
Speak English "very well" 1,549
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 699
Haitian 245
Speak English "very well" 129
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 116
Italian 91
Speak English "very well" 47
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 44
Portuguese 176
Speak English "very well" 151
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 25
German 5,182
Speak English "very well" 4,027
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,155
Yiddish, Pennsylvania Dutch or Other West Germanic Languages 407
Speak English "very well" 382
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 25
Russian 558
Speak English "very well" 380
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 178
Polish 182
Speak English "very well" 170
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 12
Other Slavic Languages 1,284
Speak English "very well" 809
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 475
Armenian N
Speak English "very well" N
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) N
Persian (including Farsi, Dari) 337
Speak English "very well" 219
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 118
Gujarati 521
Speak English "very well" 407
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 114
Hindi 295
Speak English "very well" 206
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 89
Urdu 337
Speak English "very well" 301
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 36
Punjabi 116
Speak English "very well" 60
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 56
Bengali 295
Speak English "very well" 147
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 148
Nepali, Marathi, or Other Indic Languages 1,807
Speak English "very well" 704
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,103
Other Indo-European Languages 1,567
Speak English "very well" 1,367
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 200
Telugu 154
Speak English "very well" 142
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 12
Tamil 78
Speak English "very well" 32
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 46
Malayalam, Kannada, or Other Dravidian Languages 19
Speak English "very well" 19
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) N
Chinese (including Mandarin, Cantonese) 1,060
Speak English "very well" 600
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 460
Japanese 467
Speak English "very well" 209
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 258
Korean 1,079
Speak English "very well" 460
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 619
Hmong 28
Speak English "very well" 25
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 3
Vietnamese 739
Speak English "very well" 407
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 332
Khmer N
Speak English "very well" N
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) N
Thai, Lao, or Other Tai-Kadai Languages 260
Speak English "very well" 162
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 98
Other Languages of Asia 233
Speak English "very well" 101
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 132
Tagalog (including Filipino) 2,114
Speak English "very well" 1,415
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 699
Ilocano, Samoan, Hawaiian, or Other Austronesian Languages 532
Speak English "very well" 395
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 137
Arabic 2,163
Speak English "very well" 1,116
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,047
Hebrew 2
Speak English "very well" 2
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) N
Amharic, Somali, or Other Afro-Asiatic Languages 2,471
Speak English "very well" 1,546
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 925
Yoruba, Twi, Igbo, or Other Languages of Western Africa 1,675
Speak English "very well" 1,031
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 644
Swahili or Other Languages of Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa 2,160
Speak English "very well" 1,637
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 523
Native Languages of North America 2,372
Speak English "very well" 1,610
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 762
Other and Unspecified Languages 554
Speak English "very well" 394
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 160
%
Field 306 100%
Field 307 93.3%
Field 308 6.7%
Field 310 100%
Field 310 71.4%
Field 310 28.6%
Field 313 100%
Field 314 68.9%
Field 315 31.1%
Field 316 100%
Field 316 52.7%
Field 316 47.3%
Field 319 100%
Field 319 51.6%
Field 319 48.4%
Field 322 100%
Field 322 85.8%
Field 322 14.2%
Field 325 100%
Field 325 77.7%
Field 325 22.3%
Field 328 100%
Field 328 93.9%
Field 328 6.1%
Field 331 100%
Field 331 68.1%
Field 331 31.9%
Field 334 100%
Field 334 93.4%
Field 334 6.6%
Field 337 100%
Field 337 63.0%
Field 337 37.0%
Field 340 100%
Field 340 N
Field 340 N
Field 343 100%
Field 343 65.0%
Field 343 35.0%
Field 346 100%
Field 346 78.1%
Field 346 21.9%
Field 349 100%
Field 349 69.8%
Field 349 30.2%
Field 352 100%
Field 352 89.3%
Field 352 10.7%
Field 355 100%
Field 355 51.7%
Field 355 48.3%
Field 358 100%
Field 358 49.8%
Field 358 50.2%
Field 361 100%
Field 361 39.0%
Field 361 61.0%
Field 364 100%
Field 364 87.2%
Field 364 12.8%
Field 367 100%
Field 367 92.2%
Field 367 7.8%
Field 370 100%
Field 370 41.0%
Field 370 59.0%
Field 373 100%
Field 373 100.0%
Field 373 N
Field 376 100%
Field 376 56.6%
Field 376 43.4%
Field 379 100%
Field 379 44.8%
Field 379 55.2%
Field 382 100%
Field 382 42.6%
Field 382 57.4%
Field 385 100%
Field 385 89.3%
Field 385 10.7%
Field 388 100%
Field 388 55.1%
Field 388 44.9%
Field 391 100%
Field 391 N
Field 391 N
Field 394 100%
Field 394 62.3%
Field 394 37.7%
Field 397 100%
Field 397 43.3%
Field 397 56.7%
Field 400 100%
Field 400 66.9%
Field 400 33.1%
Field 403 100%
Field 403 74.2%
Field 403 25.8%
Field 406 100%
Field 406 51.6%
Field 406 48.4%
Field 409 100%
Field 409 100.0%
Field 409 N
Field 412 100%
Field 412 62.6%
Field 412 37.4%
Field 415 100%
Field 415 61.6%
Field 415 38.4%
Field 418 100%
Field 418 75.8%
Field 418 24.2%
Field 421 100%
Field 421 67.9%
Field 421 32.1%
Field 424 100%
Field 424 71.1%
Field 424 28.9%
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Educational Attainment Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 30,983
Less than high school diploma 13.9%
High school diploma or GED 22.9%
Some college or associate's degree 28.4%
Bachelor's degree 19.5%
Graduate or professional degree 15.4%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 13.6%
Bachelor's degree or higher 6.6%
Educational Attainment: Change over Time  
Adults with no high school diploma  
% change: 2000-2022 85.5%
% change: 1990-2000 -27.7%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher  
% change: 2000-2022 259.9%
% change: 1990-2000 85.2%
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 (%) 12,493
Less than high school diploma 15.8%
High school diploma or GED 20%
Some college or associate's degree 32%
Bachelor's degree 18.2%
Graduate or professional degree 14%
Noncitizens (%) 15,264
Less than high school diploma 15%
High school diploma or GED 19%
Some college or associate's degree 21.8%
Bachelor's degree 23.3%
Graduate or professional degree 20.9%
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 483,803
Less than high school diploma 5.6%
High school diploma or GED 25.8%
Some college or associate's degree 36.9%
Bachelor's degree 22.5%
Graduate or professional degree 9.1%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Nothing  
Nothing  
Educational Attainment: Change over Time  
Adults with no high school diploma  
% change: 2000-2011 -57.3%
% change: 1990-2000 -27.4%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher  
% change: 2000-2011 80.2%
% change: 1990-2000 22.1%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 9,273
Less than high school diploma 25.0%
High school diploma or GED 20.4%
Some college or associate's degree 22.3%
Bachelor's degree 17.2%
Graduate or professional degree 15.2%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 3.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher 3.4%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 399,556
Less than high school diploma 16.0%
High school diploma or GED 28.0%
Some college or associate's degree 34.7%
Bachelor's degree 16.0%
Graduate or professional degree 5.3%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 7,890
Less than high school diploma 40.6%
High school diploma or GED 20.9%
Some college or associate's degree 18.0%
Bachelor's degree 10.1%
Graduate or professional degree 10.4%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 3.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher 2.3%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 385,940
Less than high school diploma 22.8%
High school diploma or GED 28.6%
Some college or associate's degree 30.6%
Bachelor's degree 13.4%
Graduate or professional degree 4.6%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

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.