Washington
> Most popular language: Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese)
> Residents who speak Chinese at home: 115,095
> Chinese-speaking population in Washington: 1.66%
> Washington’s total population: 7,404,107
The most commonly spoken language in Washington after English and Spanish is a form of Chinese, including Mandarin or Cantonese. Chinese immigrants first started settling along the West Coast in the mid-19th century.
West Virginia
> Most popular language: Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese)
> Residents who speak Chinese at home: 2,879
> Chinese-speaking population in West Virginia: 0.17%
> West Virginia’s total population: 1,817,305
The most common foreign language after Spanish in West Virginia is a form of Chinese — even though barely 0.17% of the state’s 1.8 million population speak a Chinese language at home.
Wisconsin
> Most popular language: Hmong
> Residents who speak Hmong at home: 42,775
> Hmong-speaking population in Wisconsin: 0.78%
> Wisconsin’s total population: 5,790,716
Hmong is the leading foreign language — behind Spanish — only in Wisconsin. The Hmong came to Wisconsin from Southeast Asia as refugees beginning in the 1970s following the Vietnam War. In Wisconsin, large Hmong communities developed in La Crosse, Sheboygan, Green Bay, Wausau, and Milwaukee.
Wyoming
> Most popular language: Other Native languages of North America
> Residents who speak other Native languages of North America at home: 2,230
> Other Native languages-speaking population in Wyoming: 0.41%
> Wyoming’s total population: 581,024
Of the 581,024 people who inhabit sparsely populated Wyoming, only 2,230 speak a Native language at home. Still, Native languages have recently overtaken German as the most commonly spoken language after English or Spanish.
