volám sa …
The phrase "my name is" in Slovak is volám sa …
Meaning: a way to identify oneself (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally means "I call myself". The word volám is the first-person singular form of the verb volat, which means "to call".
Which one should you use?
While English speakers use a possessive construction with "my name is", Slovak uses the reflexive verb construction volám sa.
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb volám is the first-person singular form of volat, meaning "to call".
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid trying to translate "my name is" literally as môj meno je. This is grammatically incorrect in Slovak.
Did you know?
- If you want to ask someone their name, you use the same verb but change the form to ako sa voláte?, which literally asks 'how do you call yourself?'
- The reflexive particle sa in volám sa traces its roots back to the Proto-Indo-European root *swé, which is an ancient ancestor to the English word 'self'.
- In Slovak, the verb volat is also used for 'to shout' or 'to yell', so literally saying 'I call myself' carries the same phonetic root as 'I shout myself'.
Examples in context
- Volám sa Michal.My name is Michal.
- Volám sa Lucia.My name is Lucia.
- Volám sa Lucia a som z Nemecka,My name is Lucia, and I'm from Germany.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “my name is” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries sa, CC BY-SA 4.0.
