¿Cómo te llamas?

[maybnxtseasn]

im just curious as to why "como te llamas" translates to "how is your name"

when u translate "como te llamas" word for word isn't it "how your name?"
im just curious as to why it wouldn't be "como es te llamas" and how do i know what sentences will have the understood "is" in it? -hope i wasnt confusing! thx

[JPablo]

I could say the Spanish literally says "How do you call yourself?"

A funny answer to that is "I do not call myself, they call me" (Yo no me llamo, me llaman.)

¿Cuál es tu nombre? (literally "What is your name?" can also be heard, but maybe in a formal setting, and/or somebody translating from English...)

The idiomatic way is to ask "¿Cómo te llamas?"...
By the way, I take the opportunity to welcome you to the forums... and to ask you as well,
¿Cómo te llamas?

[maybnxtseasn]

mi llamo es michael , y gracias. estoy queriendo aprender yo mismo espanol.

(i am wanting to teach myself spanish) im trying but make alot of mistakes as above im sure is incorrect !

[JPablo]

Originally Posted by maybnxtseasn

Me llamo es Michael , y gracias. Quiero aprender español por mí mismo.

(i am wanting to teach myself spanish) im trying but make alot of mistakes as above im sure is incorrect !

Hola Michael,
I corrected your Spanish to say, "I want to learn Spanish by myself".
(When you say "me llamo" you don't need the "is" verb there.)
Well, you're in the right place to learn. Take it step by step, and you'll be getting better at it. Ask any questions.

[CrOtALiTo]

What is your name?

What is my own name?

How am I called?

Those definition are completely curious for me.

Sincerely yours.

[pjt33]

Originally Posted by JPablo

I could say the Spanish literally says "How do you call yourself?"

A funny answer to that is "I do not call myself, they call me" (Yo no me llamo, me llaman.)

Abro mi boca y digo mi nombre.

¿O soy el único aquí que se habla a si mismo?

Back on topic: in English, the absolute preference for "What's your name?" over "What are you called?" seems fairly exceptional to me. If you're asking about someone else's name then "What's your friend called?" is perfectly acceptable (although "What's your friend's name?" is too), and if I'm asking about an object rather than a person I'm almost certain to ask "What was that TV programme called?" or "What's that thing in the corner called?"

[JPablo]

[irmamar]

Call me Ishmael.

Moby-Dick, by H. Melville.

[Elaina]

So tell me Michael........"maybe next season" you will what? Are you in show business?

Just curious.

[pjt33]

Originally Posted by irmamar

Call me Ishmael.

Moby-Dick, by H. Melville.

There are some... who call me... Tim!

Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail