English not the 1st language in 1 in 4 D.C.-area households

WASHINGTON — One in four households in the Washington region speaks a language other than English, the Census Bureau said Tuesday.

In its most in-depth analysis on language, the agency counted at least 350 languages spoken in U.S. homes.

In this area, the Census Bureau reported at least 168 languages spoken in the home.

The Washington region ranked near the top in both total languages spoken and the percentage of households that speak a language other than English. Twenty-six percent of households in the region communicate in a language other than English, the findings show.

According to the survey, Amharic is among the smaller language groups, with 43,125 speakers nationwide.

The New York metro area has the greatest diversity, with at least 192 languages spoken at home.

In two cities, English-speaking households are in the minority: The Census Bureau reports 54 percent of the Los Angeles metro area and 51 percent of the Miami metro area don’t use English at home.

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