e.g. The first year there were ten of us.

Question: Before the first year, were there more than ten people?
Or before the year, were there only ten people altogether? (Based on the sentence)

Based on the sentence, "The first year there were ten of us," it implies that in the first year there were only ten people. However, the sentence does not provide information about the number of people before the first year. To determine whether there were more than ten people before the first year or if there were only ten people altogether, we would need additional information or context.