The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word MANCHU
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
M
A
N
C
H
U
More clues leading to the result MANCHU
- People collectively associated with China, mostly
- E. Asian language inscription in Norman church
- Language adopted by Roman Church
- Member of old Chinese dynasty caught person cycling
- Listen to fellow grind on old language
- Member of old Chinese ruling class suppressed by Roman church
- Oriental language used by Roman churchmen
- Ethnic Chinese person with Chinese uniform
- Chinese minority hiding in Norman church
- Northern city half filled with superior old people
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "People collectively associated with China, mostly" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case people collectively associated with china, mostly = manchu.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.