An Interesting Piece of Trivia
In some languages, for example, in French and Spanish, one does not directly ask anyone what their name is.
Instead, they pose a euphemistic question that can be translated in English as
"How are you called?" or
"What do you call yourself?"While visiting a different country, where everyone speaks an unfamiliar tongue, are you perplexed about how to break the ice, make new friends, or even something as generic as how to ask for directions? Does using sign language and gestures seem crude when you are looking to make a good impression?
Obviously, the humongous task of mastering all the nuances of a foreign language, that too, overnight, is a nightmare. But let us try to make the impossible, possible. Here's the ice-breaker: learn a few key phrases, and voila, you have overcome the first hurdle in communication. We suggest that you start a conversation with a stranger by asking what his or her name is. Brilliant, you have now crossed the second hurdle as well. We invite you to join us in our quest to perfect how to ask anyone, no matter where they are from,
"What is your name?", and believe it or not, in 79 languages of the world (other than English).
Say "What is Your Name?" in
AlbanianCili është emri yt?
ArabicMā ismak [m] / ismik? [f]
ArmenianInchpes dzez dimel?
AzerbaijaniSizin adınız nədir?
BasqueZein da zure izena?
BelarusianJak vas zavuts'?
BulgarianKak ti e imeto ?
CatalanQuin és el teu nom?
CebuanoUnsay imong ngalan?
Chinese (Cantonese)Néih dím chìngfù a?
Chinese (Mandarin)Nǐ jiào shénme míngzì?
CroatianKoje je tvoje ime?
EsperantoKio estas via nomo?
FilipinoAno ang iyong pangalan?
FinnishMikä sinun nimesi on?
French Comment est-ce que vous vous appelez?
GalicianCal é o seu nome?
GreekPoio eínai to ónomá sou?
GujaratiTamāruṁ nāma śuṁ chē?
Haitian CreoleKi jan ou rele?
HmongYuav ua li cas yog koj lub npe?
IcelandicHvað er nafn þitt?
IndonesianSiapa nama anda?
Irish (Gaelic)Cad is ainm duit?
JapaneseAnata no namae wa nanidesu ka?
Khmerchhmoh robsa anak kuchea avei?
KoreanDangsin-ui ileum-eun mueos-ibnikka?
LatinQuod nomen est tibi?
LatvianKāds ir tavs vārds?
LithuanianKas yra tavo vardas?
MacedonianŠto e vašeto ime?
MalteseX'inhu l-isem tiegħek?
MarathiTujhē nāva kāya āhē?
MongolianTany ner khen be ?
NorwegianHva er ditt navn?
PortugueseQual é o seu nome?
PunjabiTuhāḍā nāma kī hai?
RomanianCare este numele tău?
SlovenianKako vam je ime?
SomaliWaa maxay magacaagu?
Spanish¿Cómo se llama Usted?
SwahiliJina lako ni nani?
VietnameseTên của bạn là gì?
YiddishWwʼás ʼyz dyyn nʼámʻn?
We hope our miniguide helped you take the first step in making a new friend in a new land, and that it took you further in your conquest of learning new languages.