Plurals and Nationalities

Why do we say Italians , but
we say Vietnamese, not
Vietnameses
The Russians are here.*
The Koreans are here.
The Americans are here
The Italians are here.
The New Zealanders are
here.
The Pakistanis are here.
The Chinese are here.*
The Japanese are here.
The British are here.
The Swiss are here.
The French are here.
The Portuguese are here.
It's mostly phonetic. That is,
it depends on the final sound
of the word.
Words ending in
-an, -ian, -er, -i
require an "s" in the plural
Words ending in
-ese, -ish, -iss, -ch
do not change
Languages (no article)
Russian is easy.
Korean is easy.
Italian is easy.
Chinese is easy.
Japanese is easy.
French is easy.
Generalizations**
Russians are friendly
Koreans are friendly.
New Zealanders are friendly.
The Chinese are friendly.
Chinese people are friendly.
The Japanese are friendly.
Japanese people are friendly.
The French are friendly.
Frenchmen are friendly.
*If you are talking about a
specific group (of Russians,
etc.) , the article the must be
used.
Most of the Italians (in this
class) are female.
Most of the Japanese (in the
restaurant) are from Kyoto.
**If you are talking generally,
no article or preposition is
needed.
With s : Most Americans
speak English. Not: Most of
Americans
No s: Most Vietnamese live in
Asia. Not: Most of
Vietnamese

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