According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 35.3 millions of people who identified themselves Spanish, Hispanic or Latino in 2000 12.5% of the U.S. population. This reflects an increase in the Hispanic population by almost 58% since 1990, compared with an increase of 13.2% for the total U.S. population. The projections released by the Census in 2004 reveal an exponential increase for the Hispanic population in the next 45 years: an estimated 47.7 million by 2010, 73 million by 2030, and by 2050 Hispanics are expected to represent 24.4% of the total U.S. population with 102.5 million.