Office of English Language Acquisition - Most Common Languages Spoken by English Learners (Excluding Spanish and English): Fall 2020

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah

Report analyzing English learners who speak Arabic as a home language in U.S. K–12 schools for school year 2020–21 (Fall 2020). Arabic is identified as the most commonly spoken non-English, non-Spanish home language, with national prevalence at 2.6% of all English learners. The document quantifies changes from SY 2008–09 through 2020–21, showing a rise followed by a decline, and highlights state-level increases and decreases, including Texas and California. Additional context compares language fluency among U.S. residents with Arab/Arabic ancestry using census estimates and provides footnoted sourcing.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages2

Reading Time5 min

AccessFree to download

Most common non-Spanish/English home languages

Arabic-speaking English learners by state changes (2016–17 to 2020–21)

National concentration and state percentages (2020–21)

Home languages and English fluency among residents with Arab/Arabic ancestry

Office of English Language Acquisition English Learners Who Speak Arabic as a Home Language Most Common Languages Spoken by English Learners (Excluding Spanish and English): Fall 2020 Other than English and Spanish, Arabic was the most commonly spoken language by English learners (ELs) in grades K–12 during school year (SY) 2020–21, followed by Chinese and Vietnamese. 128,641 Number ofELs Number of Reported Arabic-Speaking English Learners: 2008 through 20201 Between SY 2008–09 and fall 2017, the number of Arabic-speaking EL students increased by 92%, or more than 65,000 students. Subsequently, the number of Arabic-speaking students declined by 6%, or nearly 8,000 students. States Where Arabic Was a Top Five Language With the Largest Increase and Decrease in the Number of Arabic-Speaking English Learners: School Years 2016–17 to 2020–21 Texas Illinois North Carolina New Jersey Ohio Florida Virginia California -602 -924 -1283 -2535 +1625 +885 +669 +575 Between SYs 2016–17 and 2021–21, Texas experienced the largest increase in the number of Arabic-speaking ELs – 1,625 students, followed by Illinois, North Carolina, and New Jersey. These states experienced an increase in their Arabic-speaking EL population while the national numbers declined. The state with the largest decrease was California, which had 2,535 fewer Arabic-speaking students in SY 2020–21 than in SY 2016–17. Source for Bar Graph: U.S. Department of Education. Year. EDFacts. FS141 – DG678 . Source for other visuals: National Center for Education Statistics. 2020.“English learner (EL) students enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools, by home language, grade, and selected student characteristics: Selected school years, 2008–09 through fall 2020.” U.S. Department of Education. 1 Data for 2013–14 and earlier years include all ELs enrolled at any time during the school year. Data from all 2014 onward represent all ELs enrolled at that time point. Percentage of English Learners Who Speak Arabic as a Home Language2,3 : School Year 2020–21 Nationally, 2.6% of all ELs spoke Arabic as a home language in SY 2020–21. However, this percentage varied by state. Michigan had the highest concentration of Arabic-speaking ELs at 28.9%, followed by Maine at 13.1%. Home Languages and English Language Fluency of United States Residents Age 5–17 with Arab/Arabic Ancestry: American Community Survey 2021 Five-Year Estimate4,5 Speak language other than English and speak English less than“very well” — 40,616 Source for map: U.S. Department of Education. Year. EDFacts. FS141 – DG678 . Data from the U. S. Census Bureau estimate that there are approximately 409,953 individuals age 5–17 who have Arab ancestry. This population is linguistically diverse, with 190,514 individuals who speak only English at home and a total of 219,439 who speak a language other than English at home. Of those who speak another language, most report that they speak English “very well,” while around 40,616 speak English less than “very well.” Not all individuals with Arab ancestry spoke Arabic, although that was the most common language reported other than English: 3.7% spoke Spanish and 6.3% spoke other Indo- European languages. 2 Author calculation: Change = Difference in the total number of state-reported speakers of Arabic in SY 2020–21 and 2016–17. 3 This map depicts data only for states where Arabic was counted within the top five languages. In SY 2020–21, thirty-eight states counted Arabic within the top five languages spoken most commonly by ELs. The states that did not count Arabic within the top five languages are shown in grey. 4 American Community Survey. 2021.“Age by language spoken at home by ability to speak English for the population 5 years and over.” Table B16004 . U. S. Census Bureau. [https://data.census.gov/table/ACSDT5YSPT2021.B16004?t=504](https://data.census.gov/table/ACSDT5YSP

FAQs

How common is Arabic as a home language among English learners in 2020–21?

Nationally, 2.6% of all English learners spoke Arabic as a home language in school year 2020–21. The document notes notable state variation, including Michigan and Maine.

What changed in the number of Arabic-speaking English learners from SY 2008–09 to Fall 2017 and after?

From SY 2008–09 to Fall 2017, the number of Arabic-speaking English learners increased by 92% (over 65,000 students). After that, the number declined by 6% (nearly 8,000 students).

Which states showed the largest increase and decrease between SY 2016–17 and 2020–21?

Texas had the largest increase (+1,625 students), followed by Illinois, North Carolina, and New Jersey. California had the largest decrease, with 2,535 fewer Arabic-speaking students in 2020–21 than in 2016–17.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah