Top 10 Languages Spoken by Limited English Proficient U.S. Residents and LEP Share
Top 10 Languages Spoken by Limited English Proficient U.S. Residents and LEP Share
English is the language spoken by most people in the United States. About one in five U.S. residents, or more than 61 million people, also speak one of 380 detailed languages coded by the U.S. Census Bureau. While many of these speakers of other languages also speak English fluently, a significant share is Limited English Proficient (LEP). This tool identifies the top languages spoken nationally, by state, and in Puerto Rico, as well as the LEP share of speakers of that language. The bubble chart displays the top 10 languages (excluding English) spoken by people (ages 5 and older) across the United States and in Puerto Rico. The bigger the bubble, the larger the number of speakers of a particular language. The darker the bubble, the higher the share of speakers of this language who are LEP. The bar chart on the right ranks languages by percent of speakers who are LEP. Use the menu to select the geography of interest. After clicking on any individual bubble, click within the chart’s blank space to restore other language bubbles.
Migration Policy Institute tabulation of data from the U.S. Census Bureau's pooled 2009-2013 American Community Survey.