hola, ¿quién es?
In Spanish, 'hi, who is this?' is expressed as hola, ¿quién es?
This phrase is a standard way to ask for the identity of an unknown caller when you answer the phone.
Which one should you use?
While ¿quién es? is direct and common, ¿con quién hablo? is a slightly more formal alternative used to ask who is on the line (meaning 'with whom am I speaking?').
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some regions, you may hear Hola, ¿quién eres vos? to say 'Hi, who are you?'
What mistakes should you avoid?
When answering the phone, avoid using the second-person ¿quién eres? to ask 'who are you?' Instead, use the more natural third-person ¿quién es?
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, it is common to answer the phone with a simple ¿sí?, which literally means 'yes' but functions as 'hello'.
- The Spanish word hola might actually originate from a command to 'stop' or 'hey!' rather than a friendly greeting. It likely traces back to the French expression holà, which was used to hail someone or command them to halt.
Examples in context
- Hola, ¿quién es? No reconozco el número.Hi, who is this? I don't recognize the number.
- Perdón, hola, ¿quién es?Excuse me, hi, who is this?
Example conversation
Alejandro answers a call from an unknown number.
- AlejandroHola, ¿quién es?Hi, who is this?
- SofíaSoy Sofía, ¿cómo estás, Alejandro?It's Sofía, how are you, Alejandro?
- AlejandroAh, hola Sofía. Estoy muy bien.Ah, hi Sofía. I am doing very well.
- SofíaMe alegra oír eso.I'm glad to hear that.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries es, hola, quién, CC BY-SA 4.0.
