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Ese chaval es mi sobrino.

Ese chaval es mi sobrino.
That kid is my nephew.
From Lesson 342:Colloquial Spain (guay, el chaval)·Spanish (Spain)

Questions & Answers about Ese chaval es mi sobrino.

What kind of word is chaval and is it used everywhere?
Chaval is a very common informal word used to mean kid, boy, or teenager. It is highly specific to Spain, so if you travel to Latin America, you will usually hear words like chico, muchacho, or pibe instead. If the kid is a girl, you can say chavala.
Why does the sentence use ese for 'that' instead of aquel?
Both words mean 'that' in English, but ese is used for someone relatively close to you or the person you are talking to. You would only use aquel if the kid was much further away in the distance, like on the other side of a large plaza.
Why do we use es (from ser) instead of está (from estar) to talk about a nephew?
In Spanish, we always use the verb ser to identify who someone is and to define relationships. Family ties are considered permanent defining facts about a person, which is the exact job of ser.
If I wanted to say 'Those kids are my niece and nephew', how would the end of the sentence change?
It would become son mis sobrinos. In Spanish, when you have a mixed-gender group of relatives, you always use the masculine plural form. So sobrinos can mean either a group of nephews or a mix of nieces and nephews.

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