Languages spoken in Hackney
Hackney Household Survey 2004
It is estimated that around 100 languages are spoken in the borough.
The results from the Hackney Household Survey of 2004 were based on interviews carried out with residents in just over 3,000 households. One of the questions asked, "Is English your only or main language that you speak at home?" 66% of households stated that English was the only language they spoke at home; 22% said it was their main language and a further 12% said that they did not speak English at home.
The results from those households who had another or main language besides English, showed that the most widely spoken languages were Turkish, Yiddish, French, Gujerati, Bengali and Yoruba.
Household Survey 2004: other than English, the main or other language spoken at home (top 20 results)
| Rank | Language | Percentage of households |
| 1 | Turkish | 5.5% |
| 2 | Yiddish | 5.2% |
| 3 | French | 2.2% |
| 4 | Gujerati | 1.8% |
| 5 | Bengali | 1.6% |
| 6 | Yoruba | 1.3% |
| 7 | Spanish | 1.0% |
| 8 | Punjabi | 1.0% |
| 9 | Portugese | 0.9% |
| 10 | Urdu | 0.9% |
| 11 | Twi | 0.8% |
| 12 | Arabic | 0.7% |
| 13 | Italian | 0.6% |
| 14 | Kurdish | 0.6% |
| 15 | Vietnamese | 0.6% |
| 16 | German | 0.6% |
| 17 | Polish | 0.6% |
| 18 | Chinese | 0.5% |
| 19 | Hebrew | 0.5% |
| 20 | Greek | 0.4% |
Source: BMG Hackney Household Survey 2004
Language Survey in Hackney Schools 2000
In 2000, a survey was carried out amongst over 23,000 pupils in Hackney's primary, secondary and special schools to find out the most common first languages. There were 95 named languages in the survey; the most widely spoken were English, Turkish, Yoruba, Bengali, Gujerati and Panjabi.
Survey in Hackney Schools 2000 (top 20 results)
| Rank | Language | Number of pupils | Percentage |
| 1 | English | 10,338 | 44.5% |
| 2 | Turkish | 2,522 | 10.9% |
| 3 | Yoruba | 2,052 | 8.8% |
| 4 | Bengali | 1,472 | 6.3% |
| 5 | Gujerati | 850 | 3.7% |
| 6 | Panjabi | 614 | 2.6% |
| 7 | Twi | 549 | 2.4% |
| 8 | Urdu | 404 | 1.7% |
| 9 | Vietnamese | 384 | 1.7% |
| 10 | French | 381 | 1.6% |
| 11 | Arabic | 297 | 1.3% |
| 12 | Ibo | 281 | 1.2% |
| 13 | Cantonese | 205 | 0.9% |
| 14 | Portugese | 189 | 0.8% |
| 15 | Spanish | 176 | 0.8% |
| 16 | Hebrew | 161 | 0.7% |
| 17 | Greek | 115 | 0.5% |
| 18 | Italian | 86 | 0.4% |
| 19 | Somali | 82 | 0.4% |
| 20 | Kurdish | 61 | 0.3% |
Source: Language Survey in Hackney Schools 2000
Page updated: 15 Jun 2010
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