THE IDEA IN OTHER WORDS
The ideas conveyed by the fundamental meanings found in the word Volk appear in other words and in various languages:
GREEK
πλῆθος—a great number, a throng, a crowd, multitude, especially of people.
πολύς—properly of number, many; opposed to ὀλίγος.
οἱ πολλοί—the many; that is, the greater number.
ὄχλος—a moving crowd, a throng, irregular crowd, in a political sense, the populace or mob, opposed to δῆμος.
γένος—race, stock, family, whether by blood or by nationality: αἷμα τε καὶ γένος
——a race in regard to number, γένος ἀνδρῶν, mankind.
φῦλον—a set of men or any living beings as naturally distinct from others; a race or tribe; in a closer sense, a race of people or a nation.
ἔθνος—a number of people living together, a company, a body of men.
ἔθνος ἑταίρων—a band of comrades.
ἔθνος λαῶν—a host of men.
ὁ δῆμος—a district, country, land. Also the people of such a district, hence (as in early times the common people were scattered through the country while the chiefs held the city) the commons, common people. δήμου ἀνήρ opposed to βασιλεύς.
LATIN
Vulgus—people collectively or without distinction, the public or people generally: Non est consilium in vulgo. The multitude, the common people, the populace.
Populus—a people, the commons in contradistinction to the senate and knights: senatus populusque Romanus. The inhabitants of a country or town, a nation, a whole people: Populus Romanus victor dominusque omnium gentium. A large number of people, a crowd, throng: populus fratrum.
Plebs—The common people, commonality, the ignoble opposed to patricii, patres or senatus; whereas populus comprises both classes. When the knights, equites, were raised to a separate class, the plebs formed the third; i.e., the last or lowest class; hence, the lower class of people, the populace, the mass.
FRENCH
Peuple—a multitude of people of the same country and living under the same laws: Les peuples ne souffrent que par les fautes des rois.[6]
Peuple—a multitude of people who, although not occupying the same country, have the same religion or the same origin: et je serai leur Dieu, et eux ils seront mon peuple.[7]
Peuple—that part of a nation considered as opposed to the classes among whom there is either more ease or more education: Il y a le peuple qui est opposé aux grands. C’est la populace et la multitude.[8]
In Middle English the word people was already a synonym for folc: “A Blysful lyf, Ledden the peoples in the former age” (Chaucer).
In Modern English the word people has almost entirely displaced Volk except in colloquial or archaic speech. Like Volk in its fundamental sense we have:
People—a body of persons composing a community, tribe, race, or nation.
People—persons in relation to a superior, or to some one to whom they belong.
People—the common people, the commonality; the mass of the community as distinguished from the nobility and ruling, or official, classes, etc. “A people’s voice! We are a people yet” (Tennyson).