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“People” or “peoples” when referring to an indigenous population? Person, Persons, People, Peoples. I've seen someone using the word "peoples" today, with a vehement claim that it "is NOT grammatically incorrect". I searched on the net, but I got links (such as this) which suggests it is correct. Either way, is there a reference which ...
For example, there is a book called Africa, its peoples and their cultural history. This title does not indicate a history of individual Africans, but of African tribes and nations. People is the usual plural of person, meaning individual human, although one also sees persons. When speaking about a number of individuals, peoples is never correct.
When you refer to any one person, "persons" is correct. "No entry to unauthorized people" would suggest, admittedly only to those trying to misunderstand perhaps, that individually an unauthorized person may enter, "No entry to unauthorized persons" relates to any individual unauthorized person.
"persons" is correct, a more formal version of "people". However, "peoples" is awkwardly used in the example you provided; usually it's used in the context of different ethnic groups or indegenuous groups of a nation, e.g. the peoples of Siberia. The sign should have used "persons" or "people" instead. –
Though it is often omitted is common practice, is certainly remains correct to pluralize a collective. Just because it is becoming steadily more common to see constructs such as "The people of Europe..." does not invalidate the form "The peoples of Europe..." The first form refers to all of the people of Europe as a single collective.
Both are correct and both are required in English language, you just have to know how to use them. People denotes a group, an unspecified number of people, for example: The people in the area have been warned about the possible risks.
This is exactly correct. People is unfortunately a confusing noun, it that it acts as singular form for the original meaning, but also the plural form of 'person' in Modern English. – Noldorin
I googled but I couldn't find a proper answer. In movies I often hear phrases like: "We are a good people" or "Asgard is not a place, it's a people".
"Peoples" means a group of populations. So for example "the native American peoples" means the tribes that were living in America before Columbus. "the pukapuka peoples" would mean "the group of tribes/groups collectively known as pukapuka", whereas "the pukapuka people" would mean "the group of people known as (the) pukapuka (tribe/group/etc.)"
I am confused when talking about a general idea using "our life" when sometimes I feel like using "our lives". Please tell me the correct answer with appropriate explanation.