Oye, ¿quién es?
The Spanish phrase for "hey, who is this?" is Oye, ¿quién es?
This phrase is used to ask for the identity of a person who is calling or messaging.
Which one should you use?
While Oye, ¿quién es? (Who is it/he/she?) is common for identifying an unknown caller, you can also use ¿Quién habla? specifically on the telephone to ask "Who is speaking?" If you want to ask "Who are you?" directly in an informal way, use ¿Quién eres?
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Using Oiga instead of Oye makes the opening more polite and formal, as in Oiga, ¿quién es?
Did you know?
- The word oye comes from the verb 'oír', which means 'to hear', so you are literally saying 'Hear, who is it?'
- In some Spanish-speaking cultures, answering the phone with ¿Quién es? can sound abrupt or suspicious. It is more common to start with a greeting like ¿Aló? or ¿Diga? before asking for the caller's identity.
- While oye is common in Spain and Mexico, people in other regions might use different interjections like mirá or che to get someone's attention before asking ¿quién es? These vary wildly by country.
Examples in context
- ¡Hola! ¿Quién habla, por favor?Hi! Who is this, please?
- ¡Disculpe, pero ¿quién habla?Excuse me, but who is speaking?
- Ey, ¿quién sos?Hey, who are you?
- Oye, ¿quién es? No tengo tu número.Hey, who is this? I don't have your number.
- Oye, ¿quién es? Me estás llamando de un número privado.Hey, who is this? You are calling me from a private number.
Example conversation
Lucía receives a text message from an unknown number.
- LucíaOye, ¿quién es?Hey, who is this?
- DanielSoy Daniel, ¿te acuerdas de mí?It's Daniel, do you remember me?
- Lucía¡Ah! Hola, Daniel. No tenía tu contacto.Oh! Hi, Daniel. I didn't have your contact.
- DanielNo hay problema, Lucía.No problem, Lucía.
