Language in the 2021/22 Census
What questions were asked on Language?
The question on language reflected language use in the different countries in the UK. In England two questions were asked.
In Wales there were also questions about the Welsh language.
In Scotland there were also questions on Scottish Gaelic / Scots and British Sign Language.
In Northern Ireland there were also questions on competence and frequency of use of Irish and Ulster-Scots.
How do the questions transfer to variables and tables?
The language questions are used to derive variables for both individuals and households. The individual response summarises the detailed main language in England. There are 93 categories with some summary categories for each geographical region. In Wales there is a summary of competence in Welsh covering speaking, reading and writing. Household variables including speaking English in England and English or Welsh in Wales and an additional. Table 11 summarises multi-lingual competence.
How does it compare to previous censuses?
The open question is reported as previously as are the household languages. The addition of competency in speaking, reading and writing in Scotland and Northern Ireland will provide new variables.
What impact might the COVID pandemic have had on Language?
None
Variables
Table 1 – MAIN_LANGUAGE_DETAILED_94A
| Code | Language |
| UK languages | |
| 1 | English (English or Welsh in Wales) |
| 2 | Welsh or Cymraeg (in England only) |
| 3 | Gaelic (Irish) |
| 4 | Gaelic (Scottish) |
| 5 | Manx Gaelic |
| 6 | Gaelic (Not otherwise specified) |
| 7 | Cornish |
| 8 | Scots |
| 9 | Ulster Scots |
| 10 | Gypsy or Traveller languages |
| European languages | |
| 11 | French |
| 12 | Portuguese |
| 13 | Spanish |
| 14 | Italian |
| 15 | German |
| 16 | Polish |
| 17 | Slovak |
| 18 | Czech |
| 19 | Romanian |
| 20 | Lithuanian |
| 21 | Latvian |
| 22 | Hungarian |
| 23 | Bulgarian |
| 24 | Greek |
| 25 | Dutch |
| 26 | Swedish |
| 27 | Danish |
| 28 | Finnish |
| 29 | Estonian |
| 30 | Slovenian |
| 31 | Maltese |
| 32 | Any other EU language |
| 33 | Albanian |
| 34 | Ukrainian |
| 35 | Any other Eastern European language (non EU) |
| 36 | Northern European language (non EU) |
| 37 | Other European language (combination of EU and non-EU): Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian, and Montenegrin |
| 38 | Other European language (non-national): Any Romani language |
| 39 | Other European language (non-national): Yiddish |
| Other language | |
| 40 | Russian |
| 41 | Turkish |
| 42 | Arabic |
| West or central Asian language | |
| 43 | Hebrew |
| 44 | Kurdish |
| 45 | Persian or Farsi |
| 46 | Pashto |
| 47 | Any other West or Central Asian language |
| South Asian language | |
| 48 | Urdu |
| 49 | Hindi |
| 50 | Panjabi |
| 51 | Pakistani Pahari (with Mirpuri and Potwari) |
| 52 | Bengali (with Sylheti and Chatgaya) |
| 53 | Gujarati |
| 54 | Marathi |
| 55 | Telugu |
| 56 | Tamil |
| 57 | Malayalam |
| 58 | Sinhala |
| 59 | Nepalese |
| 60 | Any other South Asian language |
| East Asian language | |
| 61 | Mandarin Chinese |
| 62 | Cantonese Chinese |
| 63 | All other Chinese |
| 64 | Japanese |
| 65 | Korean |
| 66 | Vietnamese |
| 67 | Thai |
| 68 | Malay |
| 69 | Tagalog or Filipino |
| 70 | Any other East Asian language |
| Other languages | |
| 71 | Oceanic or Australian language |
| 72 | North or South American language |
| 73 | English-based Caribbean Creole |
| 74 | Any other Caribbean Creole |
| African language | |
| 75 | Amharic |
| 76 | Tigrinya |
| 77 | Somali |
| 78 | Krio |
| 79 | Akan |
| 80 | Yoruba |
| 81 | Igbo |
| 82 | Swahili or Kiswahili |
| 83 | Luganda |
| 84 | Lingala |
| 85 | Shona |
| 86 | Afrikaans |
| 87 | Any other Nigerian language |
| 88 | Any other West African language |
| 89 | Any other African language |
| Sign language | |
| 90 | British Sign Language |
| 91 | Any other Sign language |
| 92 | Any Sign communication system |
| 93 | Other language |
| -8 | Does not apply |
Table 2 – WELSH_SKILLS_ALL_10A
| Code | Welsh skills |
| 0 | Can understand spoken Welsh only |
| 1 | Can speak, read and write Welsh |
| 2 | Can speak but cannot read or write Welsh |
| 3 | Can speak and read but cannot write Welsh |
| 4 | Can read but cannot speak or write Welsh |
| 5 | Can write but cannot speak or read Welsh |
| 6 | Can read and write but cannot speak Welsh |
| 7 | Can speak and other combinations of skills in Welsh |
| 8 | No skills in Welsh |
| -8 | Does not apply |
Table 3 – HH_LANGUAGE_5A
| Code | Household language |
| 1 | All adults in household have English in England, or English or Welsh in Wales as a main language |
| 2 | At least one but not all adults in household have English in England, or English or Welsh in Wales as a main language |
| 3 | No adults in household, but at least one person aged 3 to 15 years, has English in England or English or Welsh in Wales as a main language |
| 4 | No people in household have English in England, or English or Welsh in Wales as a main language |
| -8 | Does not apply |
Table 4 – HH_MULTI_LANGUAGE_6A
| Code | Multi-language |
| 1 | One-person household |
| 2 | All household members have the same main language |
| 3 | Main language differs between generations, but not within partnerships |
| 4 | Main language differs within partnerships |
| 5 | Any other combination of multiple main languages |
| -8 | Does not apply |