¿Cuál/Cómo es tu nombre?

[poli]

I always assumed that cual es tu nombre is the way to say it, but I saw como es tu nombre. Is that OK too?

[Rusty]

¿Cuál es su/tu nombre? is universally used (although ¿Cómo se llama/te llamas? is the most popular way to ask someone's name).
¿Cómo es tu nombre? is used, mostly in Latin American countries, but I believe it's regarded as a less formal way to ask.
I have heard both questions used in Central America.

In some places, "¿Cómo es tu nombre?" would elicit responses like largo, bonito, feo, etc. In other places, you'll get the name of the person.
"¿Cómo es/era tu nombre?" would be a good question to ask if you didn't quite hear someone's name or have forgotten it. It would be like asking "What was that? I didn't hear you," or "I've forgotten what you said your name was. Could you repeat it?"

[poli]

Thanks for your response. In the case in which I heard it, it was used very casually to mean cual es su nombre, but your further explanation was logical and informative.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

I agree with Rusty, and I'd like to add a note: When someone asks "¿Cuál es tu/su nombre?", it's usually when they have to find it on a list, like saying, "from all these names I have here, which one is yours?" If I hear the question for an introduction, it sounds strange, because there are no "options" from where to choose. :thinking:

[poli]

When I went to school, cómo se llama was what I was taught, but I have heard cuál es su nombre even when not referring to a list which is the most correct use of the question.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

It sounds foreign, like a closer sentence to "what is your name?"
I guess the more English language permeates Spanish, the more we'll see these constructions. :)

[poli]

Here's the other side of it. So many people say mi nombre es instead of me llamo. So, ¿cuál es su nombre? is the fitting question for mi nombre es.
I am pretty sure qué es su nombre is wrong, and cómo sounds funny:banghead::lol: