# My name is...



## mini91

Hello all,

I would like to know how one would say in Hebrew, *My name is..*
I cannot read Hebrew so can it be written in Roman English please, thanks in advance.


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## RaLo18

קוראים לי - kor'im li...
שמי הוא - shmi hu... (less common).


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## dinji

RaLo18 said:


> קוראים לי - kor'im li...


This one literally means: 'I am called...'



RaLo18 said:


> שמי הוא - shmi hu... (less common).


This one literally means: 'My name is...'


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## origumi

dinji said:


> קוראים לי - kor'im li...
> 
> 
> 
> This one literally means: 'I am called...'
Click to expand...

You are correct, of course, about the literal meaning. Yet, in Modern Hebrew _kor'im li_ became a synonym to _shmi hu_, "my name is". It can still mean "I am called" but that may be considered by native Hebrew speakers as a totally different thing expressed incidently by the same words.


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## dinji

origumi said:


> You are correct, of course, about the literal meaning. Yet, in Modern Hebrew _kor'im li_ became a synonym to _shmi hu_, "my name is". It can still mean "I am called" but that may be considered by native Hebrew speakers as a totally different thing expressed incidently by the same words.


Essentially the same has happened in English: "He's called Harry" is synonymous with "His name is Harry". So the translation still works.


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## hadronic

In a even more literal meaning, _kor'im li _means "[they-]call to-me".


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## sawyeric1

Native English speakers (at least in the US) would not say "He's called Harry", even though we understand what is meant by it - except maybe if you're talking to a child and can afford to sound a little goofy. "They call me ..." is used if you want to draw attention to yourself for some reason, but is otherwise not normally used. 

I've also seen "השם של". Ex: 

Her name is Rachel
השם שלה רחל

Can you also use the "השם של" construction to say "My name is ..."? How often is this construction used compared to the other two? And are there any differences in register between them?

Thanks


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## aavichai

you can say
השם שלה רחל
השם שלה הוא רחל - better
שמה רחל

שמי רחל
and so on..

also as you said
קוראים לה רחל
קוראים לי רחל


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## sawyeric1

So you can't use the "השם של" construction for talking about your own name? 

What about register differences?


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## aavichai

I don't understand so much your saying
write an example please

you can say 
השם שלי רחל
השם שלי הוא רחל
שמי רחל
קוראים לי רחל


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## sawyeric1

"השם שלי הוא רחל" clears it up. 

Register - like how יחד is higher register than ביחד.


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## sawyeric1

So how do you know when to use which of the three? Or are they completely interchangeable like כאן and פה?


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## shalom00

In my experience, they are interchangeable.


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