People - Definition and Overview

People on the stairs to the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago

In general, the English word people refers to a specific group of humans, or to persons in a general sense.

A people may also be a group of humans which possess a common characteristic such as nationality, skin colour or a common culture. In the case of nationality, the group might be a nation.

The Old Testament refers to the people of Moses, who are considered a nation, a religion, and a culture. The individuals were assumed to share values, beliefs and a group identity. In practice, it was often hard to define such a group precisely, due to its static nature. As this type of racial identity is a compelling concept, such notions are often subverted as propaganda an attempts to promote political issues. In the West, a notable example is the German Nazi Party's propaganda against the Jews in the 1930s and 1940s.

See also

• Lists of people
• Kinship group