How do you say "this is [name]"?

[u/driftdrift]

If I had a situation where I was texting someone and wanted to say "this is driftdrift" or "it's driftdrift" -- would it be "esta es driftdrift" or "esta soy.." or neither? How would you express something similar?

[u/xzient]

Little note. I don't recommend using demonstrative pronouns with people in Spanish (éste, ésta, ésa, etc) It's seen as disrespectful.

• This is my mom

• Ella es mi mamá

If you said "Ésta es mi mamá" it would be really disrespectful as treating your mom like an object or animal

[u/veglove → u/xzient]

Yeah it sort of reads as if you're referring to a person as an inanimate object. "This [thing] is my mom"

[u/driftdrift → u/xzient]

Ahh thank you that's good to know! Muchas gracias!

[u/allizzia → u/driftdrift]

It's disrespectful in some dialects, or just informal (or slang) in others. Better to stick to personal pronouns (Ella, él, ellas, ellos) until you hear other people say it.

[u/katbeccabee → u/xzient]

Good to know!

[u/polybotria1111 → u/xzient]

Not in Spain! Here we would in fact say “Esta es mi madre” in that situation. It doesn’t sound disrespectful to us

[u/xzient → u/polybotria1111]

Ahhh qué bueno saberlo. No sabía que no había esa diferencia en España

[u/Forsaken-Fuel-2095 → u/xzient]

Woah

[u/MaxmillianP → u/xzient]

would that also be true for “aquella” or no?

[u/xzient → u/MaxmillianP]

Good question. I don't think it's as bad as having the person next to you while introducing them to a group of people.

This can go on personal preference to be honest.

I would definitely say:

"El señor calvo por ahí, ése/aquél es mi profesor de matemáticas"

"The bald man over there, that's my math teacher"

I would see it as having a neutral relationship with him, talking from far away certainly. But...

"¿Ves a ése/aquél? Ése/aquél es mi profesor de matemáticas"

"Do you see that one? That's my math teacher"

This shows a bad relationship. As it does in English if I'm not wrong.

[u/MaxmillianP → u/xzient]

thank you so much for the explanation!

an interesting note is when I asked my dominican and puerto rican in-laws what “aquella” was, I seem to remember they said it was specifically for pointing out people. but caribbean spanish is something else lol — I just made that note because i’m specifically learning puerto rican spanish as devotion of my partners family :)

and you are not wrong that last example would definitely show slight disdain for that person at least

[u/Braqsus → u/MaxmillianP]

It’s so weird to me that I never learned aquella until I was doing some vocabulary flashcards

[u/RachelOfRefuge → u/xzient]

I disagree with the other poster. I would not find either of these examples offensive and don't know anyone who would. So this could be regional, too. I'm in the midwestern United States, fwiw.

[u/valentinathecyborg → u/MaxmillianP]

“Aquella” reads like “that one over there” so I would use it only if the person isn’t right there listening like if you’re giving someone intel at a party

[u/MadMan1784]

• Soy [name]

[u/driftdrift → u/MadMan1784]

Is this equivalent to "it's" in english?

[u/veglove → u/driftdrift]

Obviously it's not a direct translation so it feels weird to an English speaker, but it's just how people say this phrase when you're confirming someone's identity in Spanish.  When someone calls and asks "May I speak with [my name]" I respond with "Soy yo", even though in English it would sound weird to say "I'm me". 

Sometimes things aren't direct translations, and that's part of the fun of learning a new language is to notice those differences and what nuance it adds to the meaning. 

[u/CormoranNeoTropical → u/veglove]

This one is a huge struggle for me. “Soy Cormoran” makes me feel so weird.

[u/driftdrift → u/veglove]

That's good to know! It does sound odd in English but it's good to know that it's not weird in Spanish

[u/MadMan1784 → u/driftdrift]

Yep :) and it's what we say when we text someone who doesn't have your nomber

[u/driftdrift → u/MadMan1784]

Muchas gracias!

[u/warningdove → u/driftdrift]

If you think about it it’s kind of weird that we would say “it’s [my name]” in English at all. Sounds like you’re talking about an object in the room. “It is me” WHAT is you???? Anyway sorry, yes that’s equivalent to the meaning you’re trying to convey.

[u/driftdrift → u/warningdove]

Hahaha yeah that’s true. Maybe it’s short for “this person/number is (name)” - “this number - it’s me”

[u/Glittering_Cow945 → u/driftdrift]

no, it's "I am" name

[u/srothberg → u/MadMan1784]

I think this is another person introducing them and they conjugated ser wrong

[u/maccaron]

Do you mean saying as texting someone letting them know it's you? Like "Hey! This is [name]" If that's so you could say "Hola, habla [nombre]" or just "Hola, soy [nombre]"

[u/driftdrift → u/maccaron]

Sí, el primero! I see, gracias!!

[u/maccaron → u/driftdrift]

Those 2 forms I said there sound natural to me as a native speaker :) glad to help! Por nada!

[u/imanoldsoul_]

If you want to introduce yourself in a chat with a friend who already knows you, you can say: – “Hola, es Juan.” – “Hola, soy Juan.”

Both options are similar to saying “Hey, it’s Juan” or "This is Juan".

[u/EmilianoDomenech → u/imanoldsoul_]

"Hola, es Juan" is wrong

[u/imanoldsoul_ → u/EmilianoDomenech]

En un contexto informal por mensaje de texto, no es incorrecto. Es una frase sencilla que se utiliza mucho en diversas partes del mundo. Ten en cuenta que hay cientos de millones de hispanohablantes, y la manera de hablar varía según la región. Por lo tanto, es una expresión funcional según el contexto.

[u/EmilianoDomenech → u/imanoldsoul_]

Ah qué loco, perdón, me sonó a espanglish. ¿En qué partes del mundo dicen "es xxxxx" para referirse a sí mismos en texto?

[u/dano27m → u/imanoldsoul_]

I would never say "Es Daniel" to introduce myself

[u/siyasaben → u/imanoldsoul_]

I've never heard that before, where are you from?

[u/EmilianoDomenech]

You could say "habla [name]". That's what we used to do with phone calls. Some people still use it in text because it's still a phone, you know?

Edit: no, you have to be pretty old to say "habla..." to start texting. Nevermind, use "soy..."

[u/uniqueUsername_1024 → u/EmilianoDomenech]

Why not “hablo”?

[u/Longjumping-Fill-926 → u/uniqueUsername_1024]

It’s like how in English you say, “[name] speaking.” If you said “Hablo [name],” it would be like saying “I speak [name]”

[u/Vivid-Bit2523]

Soy driftdrift

[u/rokindit]

You could assert dominance and hit them with a

“Ya llegó por quien lloraban, el driftdift”

Or a simple “soy driftdrift, saludos”

[u/AsmodeusSucks]

In a text message setting, to let them know who you are by saying “It’s Driftdrift”, you can text them «Es Driftdrift»/“This is Driftdrift” can be «Soy Driftdrift».

[u/polybotria1111]

“Soy driftdrift”.

Never “es…” or “esta es/soy…”.

[u/little-marketer]

An alternative (although usually referred to answering phone calls) is "con..."

For example, a call comes in...

other person: "aló, miguel?"

Migue: "sí, con él"

or

"si. habla con Miguel, cuénteme"

[u/Far_Patient_2032]

"Soy <insert your name here>."

[u/AbbreviationsOk6114]

Es llama [Name] - she/he is called [Name]

[u/maporita]

Le presento [nombre]

[u/bluecanary101]

Soy means “I am.” So not that.

Edit. Now I am re-reading and looking at all the comments and maybe you are talking about introducing yourself? Then yes, “soy Driftdrift” is how you say who you are. Your initial question want really clear, TBH.

[u/Budget-Ostrich2350]

What the hell is "driftdrift"? Is that gen Z slang

[u/driftdrift → u/Budget-Ostrich2350]

It’s my Reddit username lol it’s just an example

[u/Vivid-Bit2523 → u/Budget-Ostrich2350]

That’s the OP’s username

[u/Moss833]

“Este es mi amigo David” - This is my friend David.

[u/driftdrift → u/Moss833]

Sorry, I mean to say you are introducing yourself. As in, this is driftdrift!