There are some 35.3m Hispanics in the US

And even these figures are not final, warn officials.

The 2000 census was the first in US history to allow people to choose more than one ethnic group.

And there is also controversy over the number of people who failed to register - about 3.3 million in total.

The BBC's Rob Watson says the increased number of Hispanics has brought changes in the way businesses conduct their affairs in the US.

"These days American companies spend millions of dollars advertising their products on Spanish language television stations," he says.

But the increase has also led to tensions with the black population, although representatives of both communities say there are better prospects of co-operation between the two groups on enhancing their human rights.

Controversy

In the US, census figures are used to draw political boundary lines and determine the number of constituencies and the Congress representatives they are entitled to return.

Democrats have called on President Bush to adjust the figure to take stock of unregistered people.

But Commerce Secretary Don Evans has said he endorses the recommendation of the Census Bureau that the initial raw count offers the most accurate snapshot of the population of the United States.