Immigration & Language Adoption

Most U.S. Latinos speak Spanish: 75% say they are able to carry on a conversation in Spanish pretty well or very well. But not all Latinos are Spanish speakers, and about half (54%) of non-Spanish-speaking Latinos have been shamed by other Latinos for not speaking Spanish.

The number of people ages 5 and older who speak Arabic at home in the U.S. has risen from 215,000 in 1980 to 1.4 million in 2021.

Across 49 focus groups with Asian immigrants, daily challenges related to speaking English emerged as a common theme. Participants also shared frustration, stress and at times sadness in dealing with cultural and language barriers, and described support they received from others.

In some EU nations, sizable minorities speak something other than their country's national language in their household.

Recently arrived immigrants have markedly different education, income and other characteristics from those who have been in the U.S. for longer.

There were a record 44.4 million immigrants living in the U.S. in 2017, making up 13.6% of the nation’s population.

In 2016, a third of unauthorized immigrant adults were proficient in English – up from a quarter in 2007.

English language learners in U.S. K-12 public schools are a diverse group from many different states and native language backgrounds.

The share of Latino parents who ensure the Spanish language lives on with their children declines as their immigrant connections become more distant.

High intermarriage rates and declining immigration are changing how some Americans with Hispanic ancestry see their identity. Most U.S. adults with Hispanic ancestry self-identify as Hispanic, but 11%, or 5 million, do not.