# Subtle difference: "My name is..." vs "I am ..." **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 26, 2000, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129 "2000-04-26T05:28:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BuckshotJones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@BuckshotJones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BuckshotJones)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/1 "2000-04-26T05:28:00Z")
What do you people say when introducing yourselves, “My name is BuckshotJones” or “I am BuckshotJones”. Personally I prefer the I am. I’m having trouble classifying the psycological reasons for choosing one of the two phrases over the other. It seems that to say “I am something” is to be more confident in your declaration, compared to “my name is”, where your name may change. Is there any point in this difference of speech? This has been bothering me for many years, and I have noticed that most people start with the “My name is”. ---
**Author:** ![KeithT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@KeithT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KeithT)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/2 "2000-04-26T05:59:00Z")
To those who don’t know you, a name is just a label; you could call yourself GutrotSmith as easily as you could BuckshotJones. In this case, since the name is unimportant, “My name is” would be more accurate, since you are simply describing a label of your person. If someone is familiar with your name and your character, “I am” might be appropriate, since the name is not merely a label, but has a deeper meaning attached to it. * * * _“The best way to do mathematics is to be creatively lazy.” -I. M. Isaacs_ ---
**Author:** ![John\_Kentzel-Griffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ccd318/32.png) [@John\_Kentzel-Griffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Kentzel-Griffin)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/3 "2000-04-26T06:03:00Z")
I don’t know why this would bother you for many years. I don’t think there is any deep psychological reason behind either phrase. It’s just an idiom. I usually say “I am DrMatrix.”. I think “My name is DrMatrix.” sounds a little more formal. When someone introduces himself to me, I match whatever form he uses. In French and Spanish I would say “I call myself DrMatrix.”. * * * Virtually yours, DrMatrix If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you 0.99999999… times. ---
**Author:** ![TheNerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@TheNerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheNerd)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/4 "2000-04-26T06:08:00Z")
I personally like the “I am called \” form. It gives the information, without any sort of commitment as to the true accuracy of that label. Of course, that just sounds weird, so I usually just say, “I’m …” ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Marini](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/278dde/32.png) [@Dave\_Marini](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Marini)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/5 "2000-04-26T06:34:00Z")
My name is Dave. I am human. There’s your answer. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/6 "2000-04-26T06:42:00Z")
I usually ignore both. ‘Hi, I’m \’ ‘Hey. Tengu.’ * * * _Eschew Obfuscation_ ---
**Author:** ![2sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e47774/32.png) [@2sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2sense)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/7 "2000-04-26T06:59:00Z")
Hmm. could ‘_Hey. Tengu._’ be construed as obfuscation? 😉 peace ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/8 "2000-04-26T07:44:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by 2sense: > **Hmm. could ‘_Hey. Tengu._’ be construed as obfuscation? 😉** Heeheehee… ::Wanders off whistling the X-Files theme.:: ---
**Author:** ![Danielinthewolvesden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Danielinthewolvesden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danielinthewolvesden)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/9 "2000-04-26T09:17:00Z")
This question has been answered conclusively by L.Carroll’s Humptey Dumptey 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/10 "2000-04-26T11:49:00Z")
I usually handle this by saying, " My name is Joan." There is a reason for it. When I was younger and until I learned to stop speaking so fast, if I said, " I’m Joan." People thought my name was “Imogene” Now I say, " I’m Spartacus." ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/11 "2000-04-26T12:09:00Z")
As far as I’m concerned, the best way to put it is to use the “They call me…” introduction. I’ve never actually tried that. I should try, just to see how people respond. ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ce73a5/32.png) [@Thing\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_1)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/12 "2000-04-26T16:16:00Z")
Call me Thing 1. That is not really my name, but it is what I want you to call me. Usually in informal conversation I will just say I’m John, but for business dealings where the other person might need to remember me I start with “Hello, my name is John and I work with so and so.” This gives them both my name and who I am relevant to themselves. John * * * Then he got up on top With a tip of his hat. “I call this game FUN-IN- A-BOX” Said the cat. -The Cat in the Hat ---
**Author:** ![CatInHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@CatInHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CatInHat)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/13 "2000-04-26T16:57:00Z")
I can’t win either way. If I say “My name is Alice”, then we have the “A my name is Alice” joke. On the other hand, if I say “I’m Alice”, and I don’t enunciate clearly, it sounds like “I’m Malice”. I suppose it’s better than “Imogene”. At least people can spell “Alice”. Back to the OP: I tend to agree with Keith that the “My name is” usage suggests that there’s more to me than my name (that the name is just a label), while “I am” is more familiar, implying that there’s already meaning attached to the label for the other person. The “I call myself” usage is also standard in Italian. Does anyone out there know if this form is used in the non-Romance languages? ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2000, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/14 "2000-04-27T05:41:00Z")
In German, you would usually say “Ich heisse Green Bean,” which means “I am called Green Bean.” Or maybe “Ich heisse Gruene Bohne.” ---
**Author:** ![Dumb\_Ox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Dumb\_Ox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dumb_Ox)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/15 "2000-04-26T18:12:00Z")
I pretty much have to agree with the other posters. Pragmatics is how I decided what to use. My first name is Rich. Therefore, I always say, “My name is Rich.” The alternative, “I’m Rich,” often leads to a loan request from the other person. How clever. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/16 "2000-04-26T19:24:00Z")
In Spanish, you can’t say “I am \.” You have to use the “I call myself \.” The “I am” formation is used more to indicate your profession when introducting yourself. “Me llamo Pedro. Soy abogado.” Of course, nobody really speaks that way except in Spanish I textbooks. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2000, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/17 "2000-04-26T20:13:00Z")
My name is Jeff. But _I am_ **GLIM!** The famous detective… In Russian we say “Menia zovut…” which literally translated as “They call me…”. This is the standard passive construction so the sense of the statement is “I’m called…” which is probably more equivalent to “My name is” rather than “I am”. * * * All I wanna do is to thank you, even though I don’t know who you are… ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/18 "2000-04-29T10:13:04Z")
\>\>In Spanish, you can’t say “I am \.” Bobt, obviously you do not speak Spanish fluently because this is exactly the way you would identify yourselfoy do I have a deal for you…) to someone, over the phone for example. There is a slight nuance here. the “my name is x” would only be used with someone that does not know you and you would normally use the “I am x” form with someone who knows you. In other words, the difference is between identifying yourself to someone who already knows you, or _describing_ yourself to someone who doesn’t. (My name is X, I work for Z real estate co. and boy, do I have a deal for you…) this would also work in reverse. The police ask “what is your name” rather than “who are you” because the second question implies much more than just the name (are you the man who robbed the bank?). So, it seems that “I am x” would be used in situations where the other person knows you and it carries much more implied information. If the other person does not know you and you use that form, then you have to supplement it immediately (I am x, we met at Z’s party… remember?) Also, as has been pointed out, the “I am” form can take other meanings as in “I am the president of this corporation” or “I am a lawyer” ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/19 "2000-04-29T11:07:44Z")
Daniel mentions Humpty Dumpty, not inappropriately, since Humpty Dumpty makes a word mean whatever he wants; but I think Daniel was actually thinking of the conversation between Alice and the White Knight _Through the Looking-Glass_: “The name of the song is called _‘Haddocks’ Eyes.’_” “Oh, that’s the name of the song, is it?” Alice said, trying to feel interested. “No, you don’t understand,” the Knight said, looking a little vexed. “That’s what the name is called. The name really _is ‘The Aged Aged Man.’_” “Then I ought to have said ‘That’s what the _song_ is called’?” Alice corrected herself. “No, you oughn’t: that’s quite another thing! The _song_ is called _‘Ways and Means’_: but that’s only what it’s _called_, you know!” “Well, what _is_ the song, then?” said Alice, who was by this time completely bewildered. “I was coming to that,” the Knight said. “The song really _is ‘A-sitting on a Gate’_…” * * * Martin Gardner points out that when the Knight says, "The song really _is_, he should start singing it. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129/20 "2000-04-29T23:40:47Z")
Well, look at this example: I meet my BF’s parents for the first time passing on the street. They have never seen me before, and he has never mentioned me before. I introduce myself as “Hi, my name is Pepperlandgirl.” But let’s say it’s Christmas, and we’ve planned on going to his parents for months. They know I’m coming, they know who I am (not personally though) and so I introduce myself as “Hi, I’m Haley” See the difference? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-difference-my-name-is-vs-i-am/11129.md?page=2)