Word for "people" in Romance languages can be singular

English people, as well as peoples, is a plural word. The Spanish, French, and Italian words that translate this English word may be grammatically singular depending on which word you use, even though their meanings always imply plural.

French:
gens: Plural, e.g. les gens qui se lèvent tôt ("the people that get up early"). While cognate with Spanish singular word gente, this word is plural.
peuple: Singular, e.g. le peuple sud-américain (“the south American people”); le peuple élu (“the chosen people”). This word is used instead of gens in a context of ethnic or religious significance.

Spanish:
gente: Singular, e.g. la gente que se levanta temprano ("the people that get up early"). While cognate with French plural word gens, this word is singular.
pueblo: Singular, e.g. el pueblo mexicano ("the Mexican people").

Italian:
gente: Singular, e.g. la gente che si alza presto ("the people that get up early"). While cognate with French plural word gens, this word is singular. Well, this example is sort of contrived in that it may be more natural to say le persone che si alzano presto instead. This is opposite to English convention; we say people more than persons in this case.
popolo: Singular, e.g. il popolo degli Stati Uniti ("the people of the United States").

In short, the words corresponding to or cognate with English people, i.e. French peuple, Spanish pueblo, and Italian popolo, are all singular in the three Romance languages. In the case of the words cognate with English gentle or gentile, French gens is plural while Spanish and Italian gente is singular.