articles - When to use "the" before a group of people

I wonder which of the following would be correct/preferred:

• Regarding the English proficiency of Chinese people, ... (not sure if this is correct)


• Regarding the English proficiency of the Chinese people, ... (I believe this is correct)

By "Chinese people", I'm referring to the people/residents of China.

Note: I've seen examples on Google where "English proficiency" is replaced by other descriptions and "Chinese" replaced by British/American/Japanese/etc.

In addition, is there any difference between British vs. American usage in this case?

Thank you very much for your kind attention.

Answer

I believe the Chinese people and just Chinese people do carry ever-so-slightly-different meanings.

The Overseas Chinese, particularly those living in South-East Asia, never cease to consider themselves Chinese. The same can be true of Chinese living in Britain or America. But if you say the Chinese people it suggests to me that you are talking about the population of the People's Republic. So to encompass all Chinese I would definitely drop the article.

I'm effectively saying that the presence of the article indicates the nationality, but its absence indicates the ethnicity - all Chinese everywhere.

But whilst I can speak of the Chinese, having spent a fair amount of time in South East Asia, I am not clear whether this "rule" would operate in exactly the same way with other ethnicities.