What is your name?

Me llamo Ana means my name is Ana, but word for word it says I call myself Ana.

Introducing yourself takes three moves: say your name, ask for the other person’s, and react politely. Spanish has a ready-made phrase for each step, and once you know them you can get through the first ten seconds of any meeting.

Saying your name

The most common pattern is me llamo plus your name: Me llamo Ana. Word for word it is I call myself, from the verb llamarse, to be called. You can also say Soy Ana (I am Ana), which is short and natural, or Mi nombre es Ana (my name is Ana), which is correct but sounds a little more formal.

Asking a name

To ask, use the matching form: ¿Cómo te llamas? with tú, ¿Cómo se llama usted? with usted. The question word is cómo (how), not qué (what), because the literal question is how do you call yourself? After giving your own name, a quick ¿Y tú? (and you?) also works. At a hotel desk or a doctor’s office you may hear ¿Su nombre, por favor? (your name, please?).

Nice to meet you

After names, say Mucho gusto (literally much pleasure) or Encantado, which changes with the speaker: a man says encantado, a woman says encantada. The usual reply is Igualmente (likewise) or the same phrase back. The Instituto Cervantes lists encantado and mucho gusto among the basic ways to respond to an introduction.

Checking a name

Names are easy to mishear, so a few phrases help. ¿Cómo se escribe? (how is it spelled?) asks for the spelling, and ¿Perdón, cómo? (sorry, what?) asks someone to repeat. To confirm, say the name back as a question: ¿Daniel? To give a nickname, use me llaman (they call me): Me llamo Francisco, pero me llaman Paco. Traditional nicknames can look nothing like the full name: Pepe is short for José and Pancho or Paco for Francisco.