The Roman people was the body of Roman citizens during the Roman Kingdom, Roman Republic and Roman Empire. Variously referred to as a cultural group, a nationality or a multi-ethnicity, the meaning of "Romans" underwent considerable changes throughout the long history of Roman civilisation as its borders expanded and contracted. In classical antiquity, from the 2nd century BC to the 5th century AD, the Romans ruled large parts of Europe, the Near East and North Africa through conquests made during the Roman Republic and the later Roman Empire. Originally only referring to the Italic Latin citizens of Rome itself, by late antiquity Roman identity evolved into a collective geopolitical identity, extended to nearly all subjects of the Roman emperors and encompassing vast regional and ethnic diversity.

The Roman Empire was the post-Republican state of ancient Rome. It is generally understood to mean the period and territory ruled by the Romans following Octavian's assumption of sole rule under the Principate in 27 BC. It included territories in Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia and was ruled by emperors. The fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD conventionally marks the end of classical antiquity and the beginning of the Middle Ages.