<P> English is the most common language used in Iowa, used by 94% of the population . William Labov and colleagues, in the monumental Atlas of North American English found the English spoken in Iowa divides into multiple linguistic regions . Natives of northern Iowa--including Sioux City, Fort Dodge, and the Waterloo region--tend to speak the dialect linguists call North Central American English, which is also found in North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan . Natives of central and southern Iowa--including such cities as Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, and Iowa City--tend to speak the North Midland dialect also found in eastern Nebraska, central Illinois, and central Indiana . Natives of East - Central Iowa--including cities such as Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, and Clinton tend to speak with the Northern Cities Vowel Shift, a dialect that extends from this area and east across the Great Lakes Region . </P> <P> After English, Spanish is the second-most - common language spoken in Iowa, with 120,000 people in Iowa of Hispanic or Latino origin and 47,000 people born in Hispanic America . The third-most - common language is German, spoken by 17,000 people in Iowa; two notable German dialects used in Iowa include Amana German spoken around the Amana Colonies, and Pennsylvania German, spoken among the Amish in Iowa . The Babel Proclamation of 1918 banned the speaking of German in public . Around Pella, residents of Dutch descent once spoke the Pella Dutch dialect . </P> <P> No other language is spoken by more than 0.5 percent of the Iowa population . The only indigenous language used regularly in Iowa is Meskwaki, used around the Meskwaki Settlement . </P> <P> Des Moines is the largest city in Iowa and the state's political and economic center . It is home to the Iowa State Capitol, the State Historical Society of Iowa Museum, Drake University, Des Moines Art Center, Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden, Principal Riverwalk, the Iowa State Fair, Terrace Hill, and the World Food Prize . Nearby attractions include Adventureland and Prairie Meadows Racetrack Casino in Altoona, Living History Farms in Urbandale, Trainland USA in Colfax, and the Iowa Speedway and Valle Drive - In in Newton . </P>

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