The Older Hispanic - Demographics According to Census 2000, 281.4 million people reside in the US, and of that number, 35.3 million, or about 12.5%, are of Hispanic origin. The Hispanic population in the US increased by almost 58% throughout the last decade, from an estimated 22.4 million in 1990 (www.census.gov/prod/2001pubs/c2kbr01-3.pdf). This trend will certainly continue: by 2050, it is projected that 50 or 60 million Americans will claim Mexican descent, and that the US will constitute one of the world’s largest Latin societies, more populous than any actual Hispanic nation except Mexico and Brazil (www.hispaniconline.com/hh03/mainpages/religion/analysis.html). “Hispanic” and “Latino/a” refers to a diverse population of people who originate from Spain and from Spanish-speaking countries throughout the Americas. Hispanic people in the US originate from Mexico, the Caribbean (Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic), Central America (predominantly El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Honduras), and South America (predominantly Columbia, Ecuador, and Peru) (www.census.gov/prod/2001pubs/c2kbr01-3.pdf). As well, the Hispanic population in the US represents a diverse range of ages. Although the median age of the US Hispanic population (25.9) is younger than that of the US as a whole (35.3), elders represent a significant segment of the Hispanic population. Of the total elderly population in 1994, about 1.5 million were of Hispanic origin. The population of elders in the US is expected to increase dramatically throughout the 21st century; and as well, the elderly population is expected to become increasingly racially and ethnically diverse. It is anticipated that the number of Hispanic elderly will increase from less than 4 percent of the total elderly population in 1990, to 16 percent by the year 2050 (www.census.gov/population/www/pop-profile/elderpop.html). Thus, health care professionals will increasingly encounter elders of Hispanic origin in their practice, and will benefit from education and training to increase their competence and sensitivity to the various facets of the Hispanic population. << Back to En Espanol index | Background >> <top>