How to Say "My Name Is" in French: Je M'appelle and Its Shortcuts

“My name is” in French is je m’appelle, pronounced /zhuh mah-PEL/ - literally “I call myself.” Casually, French speakers often just say moi c’est Marie (“me, it’s Marie”). To ask someone’s name: comment tu t’appelles ? informally, or comment vous appelez-vous ? formally.

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Je m’appelle: the phrase under the hood

Je m’appelle is built on the reflexive verb s’appeler - literally “I call myself.” Note the elision: me becomes m’ before the vowel. For others: il s’appelle Thomas, elle s’appelle Marie. Spelling trap worth flagging: appeler has one L, but je m’appelle doubles it - a stem-changing pattern in the stressed forms. For the reflexive-verb system this belongs to, see French conjugation.

The three ways to give your name

Asking someone’s name

Informal: Comment tu t’appelles ? / Tu t’appelles comment ? /tü tah-PEL koh-MAHN/

Formal: Comment vous appelez-vous ? / Vous vous appelez comment ?

The reply loop naturally continues: - Et toi ? / Et vous ?, followed by enchanté(e) - see 10 ways to say hello in French for that word’s full context, and using tu vs vous correctly for the register logic behind which question to ask.

The 30-second introduction script

Bonjour ! Je m’appelle X. Je viens de [pays]. J’habite à [ville]. J’apprends le français. Et vous ?

(Hello! My name is X. I come from [country]. I live in [city]. I’m learning French. And you?)

Names in France bonus

Spelling your name aloud is its own skill - see spelling words aloud in French. And a small reassurance: French speakers naturally pronounce foreign names with a French accent; that’s normal, not a mistake on their part or yours.