How to say "my name is" in Spanish

Should you say me llamo, soy or mi nombre es?

All three are correct. Me llamo is the textbook choice and never sounds wrong. Soy is what people actually say most when they shake hands, knock on a door or pick up the phone. Mi nombre es belongs in formal speech and on official forms.

When two people introduce themselves in turn, the second often adds yo for contrast. Alba meets the young musician on her new landing, and he has just said his name:

Why does Spanish say "I call myself"?

The verb is llamarse, a reflexive form of llamar (to call). The little pronoun in front changes with the person, and it is the part learners most often leave out or mix up.

Stories use the third person all the time to introduce characters:

Without the pronoun, llamar simply means to call, usually by phone: te llamo luego is I'll call you later. Mixing the two patterns gives the classic mistake me llamo es Ana, which is two sentences jammed together.

How do you introduce yourself on the phone or by message?

Use soy. It does the job of "it's" in English: hola, soy Jake is "hi, it's Jake". A commuter texts the man she met on the train that morning:

Why do Spanish speakers have two surnames?

In Spain everyone has two apellidos (surnames): traditionally the father's first surname followed by the mother's first surname, so Ana García López. Today parents can agree to put the mother's surname first. Women keep their own surnames when they marry. On forms you will see nombre (first name), primer apellido and segundo apellido.

If someone gives a name you do not catch, ask them to spell it, and answer with your own the same way. The next step in the conversation is how to say nice to meet you in Spanish.