Most people (e.g. a generalization) like chocolate.

vs.

Most of the people (e.g. ‘in this house’) like chocolate.

Most people = much more than 50%!

“Many” sounds less strong to me.

So if you want to make a very bold statement, use “most.”

If you want to make a statement, but aren’t absolutely sure about the numbers, use “many.”

If I say “most of the people want candy” that means that there is a majority of people who want candy. More than 50% want candy.

If I say “many of the people want candy” that’s simply indicating that there are a number of people who want candy. It could be more or less than the majority.

Many the people is not correct.

You must use “of” if you are going to use “the”.

You could leave out “the” and use most people and many people.

If you use “the”, you must use “of”.

How many coins do you have?

How much money have you?