The most natural way to say my name is in German is Ich heiße … (ikh HY-seh), from heißen, to be called: Ich heiße Anna. Mein Name ist Anna Weber is correct but more formal, for the phone or a reception desk. Casually, Ich bin Anna works too. To ask back: Wie heißt du? or, politely, Wie heißen Sie?
- Everyday
- Ich heiße …
- Formal
- Mein Name ist …
- Casual
- Ich bin …
- What's your name?
- Wie heißt du? / Wie heißen Sie?
- Level
- A1
Ich heiße, ich bin or mein Name ist: which one?
English uses "my name is" for almost everything. German has three options, and the one that sounds most like English is actually the stiffest.
| German | Register | Where it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Ich heiße Anna. | Neutral | Anywhere: class, work, a party |
| Ich bin Anna. | Casual | Among people your age, at a party, at the gym |
| Mein Name ist Anna Weber. | Formal | Phone calls, appointments, official settings |
| Ich bin die Anna. / Ich bin der Tom. | Colloquial | Very common in southern Germany and Austria |
| Weber, guten Tag. | Formal | Answering the phone with your surname |
Ich bin is what most people use in a quick spoken introduction. In a Contos story, a stranger rings a librarian out of the blue, and the polite Sie in the next breath tells you how formal the call is:
Entschuldigung, ich bin Konstantin.Adding Herr or Frau to your own name keeps people at arm's length. It is what a cold, important caller does in a Contos B2 thriller:
Frau Hoffmann? Ich bin Herr Kaufmann.How do you ask someone's name in German?
Pick du or Sie first, then the verb follows. Use du with children, friends, fellow students and most people under thirty in casual places. Use Sie with adults you don't know, in shops and offices, and with anyone older until they offer du.
Wie heißt du?
What's your name?
Informal.
Wie heißen Sie?
What's your name?
Formal.
Wie ist Ihr Name, bitte?
What is your name, please?
Formal and official: a receptionist, a doctor's surgery.
Ich heiße Tom. Und du?
I'm Tom. And you?
The easy way to hand the question back.
Das ist meine Mitbewohnerin Lena.
This is my flatmate Lena.
Introducing someone else: Das ist …
If your name is unfamiliar in German, you will often be asked Wie schreibt man das? (how do you spell that?). Learning the German alphabet pays off fast here.
What mistakes do learners make with heißen?
Heißen already means "to be called", so it never takes ist or bin. Its forms are ich heiße, du heißt, er and sie heißt, wir heißen, ihr heißt, Sie heißen. In Switzerland, which doesn't use the letter ß, it is spelled heissen.
- Not "Ich bin heiße Anna". Pick one verb: Ich heiße Anna or Ich bin Anna.
- Not "Mein Name heißt Anna". It is Mein Name ist Anna.
- Don't confuse heiße with heiß (hot). "Ich bin heiß" means I'm hot in the attractive sense; to say you feel warm, use Mir ist heiß.
- Heißen also means "to mean". Was heißt das? is what does that mean?
Name is masculine, so it is der Name, mein Name, Ihr Name. A Contos A1 chapter puts it in two very plain sentences, about a letter addressed to someone who doesn't live in the flat:
Der Name ist nicht Sophia. Der Name ist Samuel.Once names are exchanged, the next line is usually Freut mich: see how to say nice to meet you in German.
Meet Lena, Jonas and their new flatmate in a free A1 German story, and tap any word for its meaning.
Read free in your browserFrequently asked questions
How do you pronounce Ich heiße?
Roughly "ikh HY-seh". The ch in ich is a soft hiss made with the tongue near the roof of the mouth, not the k in English. Ei sounds like English "eye", and ß is a sharp s.
Is Mein Name ist rude or wrong?
Neither. It is correct German, just formal. On the phone, at a hotel reception or when you give your details, it fits perfectly. At a party it sounds a little like a job interview.
Should I give my first name or my surname?
In casual settings, first names. At work and in formal situations, many Germans introduce themselves with their full name or surname and expect to be called Herr or Frau plus surname until du is offered.
How do you say "I'm called" for a nickname?
Use nennen (to call): Alle nennen mich Toni, everyone calls me Toni. Or say Ich heiße Antonia, aber sag einfach Toni, I'm Antonia, but just call me Toni (to a du friend).