¿cómo se llama?
/ˈkomo se ˈʝama/word by word
The phrase "what is his/her name?" in Spanish is translated as ¿cómo se llama?
This phrase is a question used to ask for the name of another person.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, ¿cómo se llama? translates to "how does he/she call himself/herself?"
Which one should you use?
Unlike English, the Spanish phrase does not use a possessive pronoun (his/her) to ask for a name. It uses a reflexive verb.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈkomo se ˈʝama/
Did you know?
- The word llama in this phrase is a homonym that also refers to the South American camelid, which was borrowed from Quechua.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, when asking ¿cómo se llama?, it is common to follow the answer by asking for the person's 'apellido' to get their full name.
- In Spanish, you can use ¿cómo se llama? to ask for the name of a person or to ask what an inanimate object is called.
Examples in context
- Él es nuevo, ¿cómo se llama?He is new, what is his name?
Example conversation
Daniel and Sofía are looking at a photo of a new colleague.
- DanielÉl es muy amable, ¿cómo se llama?He is very kind, what is his name?
- SofíaSe llama Carlos.His name is Carlos.
- Daniel¿Cómo se llama su esposa?What is his wife's name?
- SofíaSe llama Elena.Her name is Elena.
