Languages in the U.S.
The U.S. is known to be a melting pot of different cultures. Hence, a great variety of languages are spoken all across the country besides the most common two: English and Spanish. 78% of Americans speak English at home, while Spanish is spoken in 62% of non-English-speaking households. However, despite the prevalence of the two languages, between 350 to 430 other different languages can be found in the U.S.
It is interesting to analyze what is the most spoken language besides English and Spanish in each one of the 50 states, as knowing this information can tell us a lot about the demographics of the different areas.
So what are the most common languages (besides Spanish and English) spoken in each state? Due to the great number German immigrants in the mid-18th century, German is the third most spoken language in 13 states, including Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, North Dakota, Missouri, Arkansas, Wisconsin, Indiana, Kentucky, Alabama, and West Virginia.
In addition, approximately 9.4 million people in the U.S. claim French or French-Canadian ancestry, leading to French being the fourth most prevalent language in the U.S., and it is the most spoken language besides English and Spanish in 7 states, including Louisiana, North Carolina, D.C., Maryland, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire.
Below is a list of all the states and the most spoken language in that state besides English and Spanish.
| Alaska | Aleut languages |
| Alabama | German |
| Arkansas | German |
| Arizona | Navajo |
| California | Chinese |
| Colorado | German |
| Connecticut | Portuguese |
| District of Columbia | French |
| Delaware | Chinese |
| Florida | Haitian Creole |
| Georgia | Korean |
| Hawaii | Japanese |
| Iowa | Arabic |
| Idaho | German |
| Illinois | Polish |
| Indiana | German |
| Kansas | Chinese |
| Kentucky | German |
| Louisiana | French |
| Massachusetts | Portuguese |
| Maryland | French |
| Maine | French |
| Michigan | Arabic |
| Minnesota | Hmong |
| Missouri | German |
| Mississippi | Vietnamese |
| Montana | German |
| North Carolina | French |
| North Dakota | German |
| Nebraska | German |
| New Hampshire | French |
| New Jersey | Portuguese |
| New Mexico | Navajo |
| Nevada | Tagalog |
| New York | Chinese |
| Ohio | Arabic |
| Oklahoma | Vietnamese |
| Oregon | Russian |
| Pennsylvania | Chinese |
| Rhode Island | Portuguese |
| South Carolina | French |
| South Dakota | Dakota languages |
| Tennessee | Arabic |
| Texas | Vietnamese |
| Utah | Portuguese |
| Virginia | Korean |
| Vermont | French |
| Washington | Chinese |
| Wisconsin | German |
| West Virginia | German |
| Wyoming | German |