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Learn how to talk about yourself in Mandarin and ask others about themselves.

Join Scottish pupils as they give Mandarin a go!

Listen and guess what they are saying before trying yourself.

Tip: This video can be used as an interactive introduction to this topic or as a recap on key vocabulary and phrases already learnt.

Remember!

It doesn't matter if your pronunciation isn't perfect. Try your best and have fun!

In Mandarin, there are two verbs that can be used when asking for someone¡¯s name.

There is ½Ð Âá¾±¨¤´Ç to ask for a person¡¯s full name, or in some cases their first name, and ÐÕ ³æ¨¬²Ô²µ to ask for a person¡¯s last name.

This gives you two different ways of asking for someone's name in Mandarin:

Äã½Ðʲô£¿ ±·¨« Âá¾±¨¤´Ç sh¨¦n me?

What's your name?

ÄãÐÕʲô£¿ ±·¨« ³æ¨¬²Ô²µ sh¨¦n me?

What's your last name?

You can answer in Mandarin using:

ÎҽР°Â¨¯ Âá¾±¨¤´Ç

My name is¡­

ÎÒÐÕ °Â¨¯ ³æ¨¬²Ô²µ

My last name is¡­

There are two ways to ask someone's age, depending on how old they seem:

• If the person seems 10 years or younger, use:

Ä㼸ËêÁË£¿ ±·¨« j¨« su¨¬ le? - How old are you?

• If the person seems older than 10 years old, use:

Äã¶à´óÁË£¿ ±·¨« du¨­ d¨¤ le? - How old are you?

You can answer either question in Mandarin using:

ÎÒ ¡­ ËêÁË °Â¨¯ ¡­ su¨¬ le - I am ¡­ years old.

Examples:

• ÎÒ°ËËêÁË °Â¨¯ b¨¡ su¨¬ le - I am eight years old
• ÎÒ¾ÅËêÁË °Â¨¯ ji¨³ su¨¬ le - I am nine years old
• ÎÒÊ®ËêÁË °Â¨¯ sh¨ª su¨¬ le - I am ten years old

You can learn more about Mandarin numbers here.

Did you know?

In China, when you are asking for the age of someone older than you, you show your respect by asking:

Äú¶à´óÄê¼ÍÁË£¿ N¨ªn du¨­ d¨¤ ni¨¢n j¨¬ le? - How old are you?

This phrase is usually used when talking to elderly people. It is not considered rude to ask how old someone is in China.

To ask where a person lives, you can say:

ÄãסÔÚÄÄÀ ±·¨« zh¨´ z¨¤i n¨£ l¨«? - Where do you live?

You can say:

ÎÒסÔÚ¡­ °Â¨¯ zh¨´ z¨¤i¡­ - I live in¡­

• ÎÒסÔÚËÕ¸ñÀ¼ °Â¨¯ zh¨´ z¨¤i s¨± g¨¦ l¨¢n - I live in Scotland

To ask where a person is from, you can say:

ÄãÀ´×ÔÄÄÀ ±·¨« l¨¢i z¨¬ n¨£ l¨«? - Where are you from?

You can say:

ÎÒÀ´×Ô¡­ °Â¨¯ l¨¢i z¨¬¡­ - I am from¡­

• ÎÒÀ´×Ô²¨À¼ °Â¨¯ l¨¢i z¨¬ b¨­ l¨¢n - I am from Poland

To ask what nationality a person is, you can say:

ÄãÊÇÄĹúÈË£¿ ±·¨« sh¨¬ n¨£ gu¨® r¨¦n? - What nationality are you?

To reply, you say: ÎÒÊÇ ('I am') + the country + ÈË ('person'):

ÎÒÊÇ ¡­ ÈË °Â¨¯ sh¨¬ ¡­ r¨¦n - I am¡­ (nationality)

• ÎÒÊÇËÕ¸ñÀ¼ÈË °Â¨¯ sh¨¬ s¨±g¨¦l¨¢n r¨¦n - I am Scottish

Now you've learnt how to talk about yourself in Mandarin, let's put it into a conversation! Add to it if you need more of a challenge!

Alex: ÄãºÃ, ÎҽРAlex. Äã½Ðʲô?

±·¨« h¨£o, w¨¯ Âá¾±¨¤´Ç Alex. ±·¨« Âá¾±¨¤´Ç sh¨¦nme?

Hello, I¡¯m called Alex. What are you called?

Sarah: ÄãºÃ, ÎҽРSarah. Ä㼸Ëê?

±·¨« h¨£o, w¨¯ Âá¾±¨¤´Ç Sarah. ±·¨« j¨« su¨¬?

Hello, I¡¯m called Sarah. How old are you?

Alex: ÎÒ¾ÅËê. ÄãÄØ?

°Â¨¯ ji¨³ su¨¬. ±·¨« ne?

I¡¯m nine years old. How about you?

Sarah: ÎÒÊ®Ëê.

°Â¨¯ sh¨ª su¨¬.

I¡¯m ten.