America has become a place where tot many people have come over the years in the search of greener pastures. They have settled and now call the country home. But no matter how long they live in America, many people still retain their native languages.
In 2019, 241 million people reported to speak English at home regardless of where they hail from, while 67.8 million people say they speak other languages apart from English at home.
Below are the most spoken languages in America apart from English and Spanish:
1) Cantonese and Mandarin
Estimated number of speakers nationally: 3,495,000
Commonly spoken in 17 American states.
States that most commonly speak the language: California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Alabama, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland.
Chinese immigrants have been coming to America in large numbers since the mid-19th century, when the California Gold Rush compelled them to cross the Pacific Ocean. Today, there are over 5 million Chinese Americans across the country.
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2) Tagalog
Estimated number of speakers nationally: 1,764,000
Commonly spoken in one state.
States that most commonly speak the language: Nevada
Immigrants from the Philippines started coming to America in large numbers by the turn of the 19th century, but it wasn’t until 1965 that both skilled and educated workers came by the thousands. Today, there are over 4 million Filipino Americans.
3. Vietnamese
Estimated number of speakers nationally: 1,571,000
Commonly spoken in five states.
States that most commonly speak the language: Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi and Georgia.
South Vietnamese immigration to the U.S. began right after the Vietnam War ended in 1975, and more Vietnamese people have been arriving ever since. Today, over half of all Vietnamese-Americans live in either California or Texas.
4) Arabic
Estimated number of speakers nationally: 1,260,000
Commonly spoken in two states.
States that most commonly speak the language: Michigan and Tennessee.
Michigan alone has over 140,000 Arabic speakers. California has over 190,000 speakers. Pew Research Center noted that Arabic is the fastest-growing language in the U.S., with speakers growing by 29% from 2010 to 2014.
5) French
Estimated number of speakers nationally: 1,172,000
Commonly spoken in four states.
States that most commonly speak the language: Louisiana, Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire.
After the Louisiana Purchase, French evolved from its original form, creating Louisiana French which also borrows words from English, Spanish, Native American, and African languages. To this day, it’s still spoken by around 175,000 people in Louisiana and Texas.