Who you are
🎯 Say your name, your country and what you do.
🗣️ Say these out loud
- 我叫阿尼尔 — wǒ jiào Ānní'ěr 🔊 waw JYOW ah-nee-er My name is Anil. 叫 jiào = to be called. Foreign names are written in characters chosen for their sound.
- 你叫什么名字？— nǐ jiào shénme míngzi? 🔊 nee jyow SHUN-muh MING-dzuh What is your name? 什么 shénme = what. Notice it sits exactly where the answer will go.
- 我是印度人 — wǒ shì Yìndùrén 🔊 waw shr yin-doo-REN I am Indian. 印度 Yìndù = India, 人 rén = person. Every nationality is built this way: 中国人 Chinese person, 美国人 American.
- 我是学生 — wǒ shì xuéshēng 🔊 waw shr shweh-SHUNG I am a student. 是 shì is 'to be' and is used only between two nouns, never before an adjective.
- 你是哪国人？— nǐ shì nǎ guó rén? 🔊 nee shr na gwo REN Which country are you from? Literally 'you are which country person'.
- 很高兴认识你 — hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ 🔊 hun gow-shing run-shr NEE Very pleased to meet you. Worth learning as one block, not word by word.
Read every line aloud twice before moving on. The mouth learns a language, not the eye.
🔍 Nothing changes shape — ever
Chinese verbs and nouns never change. 是 shì is 'am', 'is', 'are', 'was' and 'were'. 学生 xuéshēng is 'student' and 'students'. There is no conjugation to learn and no plural to add. Time is shown by a word like 'yesterday', not by changing the verb.
- 我是学生 = I am a student · 他是学生 = he is a student · 他们是学生 = they are students
- 昨天我很忙 zuótiān wǒ hěn máng = yesterday I was busy — 'yesterday' does the work a past tense would do.
- This is why the grammar is easy and the listening is hard.
🌍 Among the people
A Chinese name puts the family name first: in 习近平, 习 is the surname. When a Chinese person gives you their full name, the first syllable is the family.
🔁 Practise today
- Write your six-line self-introduction in pinyin and read it aloud.
- Learn 人 rén and build five nationalities with it.
- Ask and answer 你叫什么名字 with a friend or a mirror, ten times.
