Introducing Yourself and Others

Introducing yourself in Czech means saying three things — your name, where you're from, and what you do — and each one quietly uses a different case. Your name rides on a reflexive verb (jmenovat se); your origin takes z + the genitive; and your profession, in careful Czech, goes into the instrumental. This page walks through all three patterns plus how to introduce other people, and flags the two mistakes English speakers make every time.

Saying your name

There are two everyday ways to give your name.

Jmenuji se… — "My name is…" (literally "I call myself…"), built on the reflexive verb jmenovat se. The colloquial form is jmenuju se. This is the most common, neutral self-introduction.

Já jsem… / Jsem… — "I am…" with the verb být. Slightly more casual, very common in relaxed settings.

The se in jmenuji se is not optional — it is part of the verb, exactly as in jak se máte (see the reflexive se/si introduction). And it must sit in second position: Jmenuji se Petr, or with an emphatic pronoun Já se jmenuji Petr.

Asking someone's name

The question mirrors the greeting split between ty and vy:

Use jmenuješ (the ty-form) with children, friends, peers your own age in casual settings; use jmenujete (the vy-form) with anyone you'd address formally. When in doubt, the formal jmenujete is the safe choice.

"Pleased to meet you": Těší mě

The standard formula on first meeting is Těší mě — literally "it pleases me," i.e. "pleased to meet you." It's invariable and you can lengthen it to Těší mě, že vás poznávám "pleased to meet you" (formal, "that I'm meeting you") or Rád vás poznávám (a male speaker) / Ráda vás poznávám (a female speaker).

Where you're from: z + genitive

To say where you come from, use the preposition z ("from") plus the genitive case. The country or city name is not in its dictionary (nominative) form — it changes its ending.

The question is Odkud jsi? (informal) / Odkud jste? (formal), "Where are you from?" Note how the feminine -a places (Praha, Amerika) take -y in the genitive (z Prahy, z Ameriky), while masculine and neuter places take -a (z Londýna, z Brna). The full set of genitive prepositions is on the genitive after prepositions page.

Your profession: the instrumental (or how speech cheats)

Here is the subtle one. To say what you are — your profession or role — careful Czech puts the noun into the instrumental case after být ("to be") or stát se ("to become"):

Why the instrumental? Czech uses it for a role you occupy rather than an identity you simply are — being a teacher is something you do, a hat you wear, and the instrumental is the case of "functioning as." This contrasts with permanent identity, where the nominative is used (To je můj bratr "That's my brother"). The logic is laid out on the instrumental as predicate page.

The honest caveat: in everyday speech, many Czechs simply use the nominative — Jsem učitel, Jsem student — and you will hear it constantly. It's not "wrong" colloquially. But the instrumental is the careful, standard form, the one to use in writing and formal contexts, and the one that will never be marked down. Learn Jsem učitelem as your default and you're always safe.

A neat dodge avoids the choice altogether: pracovat jako "to work as" + nominative.

Introducing other people

To introduce a third person, point and use To je… "This is…" (invariable to, regardless of the person's gender), or, more formally, invite people to meet with Seznamte se "Let me introduce you" (literally "get acquainted").

Note that To je… uses the neuter to even for a man or a woman — it's a fixed presentational frame, like English "This is," not an agreement with the person. The person's name and role that follow stay in the nominative (Lucie, pan Novák), because they're predicate identities, not professions occupied.

A full introduction round

Put the pieces together and a first meeting flows like this:

Usage note

Two reflexes from English will trip you up. First, the urge to leave place names in their dictionary form — z Anglie, z Londýna, z Prahy all require the genitive, never the bare nominative. Second, forgetting that a profession after být can take the instrumental: Jsem učitelem, not only Jsem učitel. If the instrumental endings feel like a lot at A1, fall back on the pracuji jako + nominative escape hatch, which is completely natural and sidesteps the case entirely — but do learn to recognise Jsem učitelem when you hear it. Round off any introduction with the greetings and politeness formulas from greetings and politeness.

Common Mistakes

Key Takeaways

• Give your name with Jmenuji se… (reflexive se, never dropped) or Já jsem…; ask with Jak se jmenuješ? (ty) / Jak se jmenujete? (vy).
• Origin uses z + genitive: z Anglie, z Londýna, z Prahy — never the bare nominative.
• Profession after být / stát se takes the instrumental (Jsem učitelem); the colloquial nominative (Jsem učitel) is common but the instrumental is the careful standard. Pracovat jako + nominative sidesteps it.
• Say Těší mě on meeting; introduce others with To je… or Seznamte se.