Cum se numește strada?

the street

Breakdown of Cum se numește strada?

• cum: how
• a se numi: to be called

Questions & Answers about Cum se numește strada?

Why does the sentence use cum when English uses what?

Romanian often uses cum (how) in questions about names.

So Cum se numește strada? is literally closer to How is the street called?, but the natural English meaning is What is the street called?

This is just a normal Romanian pattern:

• Cum te numești? = What is your name? / literally How do you call yourself?
• Cum se numește orașul? = What is the city called?

So even though it looks like how, you should learn it as the standard way to ask for a name.

What does se numește mean exactly?

Se numește means is called or is named.

It comes from the verb a se numi, which literally has a reflexive form and means to be called / to call oneself.

In this sentence:

• se = reflexive marker
• numește = is called / calls itself

So:

• strada se numește X = the street is called X

This reflexive structure is very common in Romanian when talking about names.

Why is there a se here? Can I just say Cum numește strada?