There are vs there have been

Question

Hi.

Please help me make a sentence.

I want to know if it sounds natural to use present perfect in the sentence below. The country the speaker is talking about is not where you can expect any western culture to be found.

There have been people in this country who love western pop culture since about 5 years ago.

There are people in this country who love western pop culture since about 5 years ago.

Please also let me know if there's a better way of saying it.

Thank you in advance.

Wilpeter · Accepted Answer

The first sentence sounds natural. It indicates that the specified people have continued to be here during that period.

In the second sentence ‘since about 5 years ago’ refers back to the verb ‘love’ instead of ‘are’.

Try omitting the phrase ‘who love western pop culture’ and compare the structure that remains and I think you can see it better.

MountainHiker · Answer

My comments are in addition to wilpeter's comments.

kook jThere have been people in this country who love western pop culture since about 5 years ago.

I agree with wilpeter that this sentence sounds natural. If I were to write this sentence, I would change it slightly.

kook jPlease also let me know if there's a better way of saying it.

About five years ago, some people in this country began to love western pop culture.

Note that the comma is optional. If there is no comma, then everyone will still understand the sentence.

In this following sentence, however, a comma is necessary.

Before eating, the citizens gathered to protest the government latest budget.

Without the comma, it reads initially as though the citizens were being eaten.

Back to the comparison between my revised sentence and your initial sentence, I find "since about" slightly awkward. And, I prefer "some people" to "there have been people." Note, too, that my revised version is slightly shorter.

There are vs there have been

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