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There are words like New Yorkers, Londoners, etc.: (1) they keep the name of the city/town; (2) they refer to the people living in it. How do I fulfill both conditions for a small town called Somesmalltown? Say,in a sentence like:

50% of Londoners went to a football match on Tuesday?

Phrases like “citizens of Somesmalltown” or “population of the Somesmalltown” seem to be out of place in this case, as I take it.

Does a phrase like Somesmalltown`s people,Somesmalltown people or similar sound right?

user48618
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  • Does a phrase like Somesmalltown`s people,Somesmalltown people or similar sound right? – user48618 Jul 06 '14 at 17:00
  • @user48618 Yes they could sound right. The point is that if it's a real place then there may be an accepted word to use, but there's no way of guessing what it is. If it's not a real place then you have lots of options. If you don't want it to seem like you're coining a demonym, you could say something "50% of the people/population of Somesmalltown...". – Rupe Jul 07 '14 at 09:40

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There are numerous constructions to characterize inhabitants of locales. Often the location name is kept intact, but sometimes there are minor modifications, such as dropping a final e, to make the construction easier. Sometimes the change is more dramatic (such as Liverpudlian).

Suffixes for inhabitants include

  • -er
  • -ier
  • -eer
  • -an
  • -ian
  • -ite

Which will work for a given locale depends on sound, word structure, and, most imprtantly, the preferences of the local community. Some will resist any neologism for their citizenship.

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