Questions & Answers about Nie wiem, jak on się nazywa.
Why is się in the middle of the sentence instead of right after nazywa?
The reflexive word się generally avoids the very end of a sentence if possible. Putting it at the end (...jak on nazywa się) sounds unnatural to Polish ears, so it tucks in right before the verb instead.
Why do we use się with this verb?
The verb nazywać on its own means "to name" or "to call" someone else (like naming a pet). Adding się makes it an action done to oneself. So, nazywać się literally means "to call oneself".
The English translation says "what his name is", but is there a word for "what" or "name" here?
No, Polish phrases this differently! Instead of asking "what", Polish uses jak (how). The literal translation of jak on się nazywa is "how he calls himself".
Why do we need a comma before jak?
Polish has a strict rule about commas: you almost always need one to separate two parts of a sentence that each have their own verb. Since we have wiem (I know) in the first half and nazywa (calls) in the second, they must be separated by a comma.