<P> Likewise, a percentage of Hispanics as defined by the U.S. government trace their ancestries to the Middle East, for example Colombians, Ecuadorians, Chileans, and Mexicans of Lebanese or Palestinian ancestry; Hispanics of Middle Eastern ancestry are usually to be considered Hispanic by the U.S. government, because they possess stereotypical Southern European appearance . Many Hispanics are of East Asian ancestry, as in the case of Cubans, Mexicans, Panamanians and Peruvians . If they were to migrate to the United States, the definition most frequently advocated would consider them Hispanic (see also: Asian Hispanic American and Asian Hispanic and Latino Americans). </P> <P> The presence of these mentioned ethnic groups are not country - specific, since they can be found in every Hispanic American country, whether as larger of smaller proportions of their respective populations . Even in Spain, the European motherland of Hispanicity, recent decades has seen a growing population of mestizos and mulattoes due to the reversal of the historic Old World - to - New World migration pattern . </P> <P> Of the over 35 million Hispanics counted in the Federal 2000 Census, 47.9% identified as White (termed White Hispanic by the Census Bureau); 42.2% some other race; 6.3% two or more races; 2% Black or African American; 1.2% American Indian and Alaska Native; 0.3% Asian; and 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander . Note that even among those Hispanics who reported one race only, most would also possess at least some ancestral lineage from one or more other races, despite the fact that only 6.3% reported as such (this is also applicable to the non-Hispanics counted in the U.S. Census, although maybe in less proportion). </P> <P> According to one study (Stephens et al. 2001), from the genetic perspective, Hispanics generally represent a differential mixture of European, Native American, and African ancestry, with the proportionate mix typically depending on country of origin . </P>

The term for the spanish-speaking countries of the americas