Breakdown of Le doy el libro a Luis.
el libro
the book
a
to
le
to him / to her / to you (formal) / him (direct object, male person)
dar
to give
Questions & Answers about Le doy el libro a Luis.
Why do we need the word le if we already say a Luis at the end?
In Spanish, it is extremely common to use an indirect object pronoun like le (to him/her) even when you specifically name the person later with a Luis. It acts as an extra marker pointing to who receives the action. In English, we would never say 'I give him the book to Luis,' but in Spanish, this double marking is the standard and natural way to speak.
Why doesn't the sentence start with yo (I)?
The verb doy (I give) already tells us exactly who is doing the action because it is the specific 'I' form of the verb dar (to give). In Spanish, you usually drop the subject pronoun like yo unless you want to add special emphasis or clear up a confusion.
Why does le go before the verb instead of after it?