Module 2 — Hello, My Name Is...

Lesson 2 — What Is Your Name?

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You already know how to introduce yourself:

Ma olen Anna.

I am Anna.

and:

Minu nimi on Anna.

My name is Anna.

Now you will learn how to turn that introduction into a natural two-way conversation.

In this lesson, you will learn:

how to ask someone's name,
how to answer naturally,
sina and sa — you,
sinu and su — your,
how to ask And you?,
and how to have a complete name exchange.

1. Mis su nimi on? — What Is Your Name?

The normal informal question is:

Mis su nimi on?

Meaning:

What is your name?

Break it down:

mis — what
su — your
nimi — name
on — is

This is a standard and natural everyday expression in Estonian.

2. Answering Naturally

If someone asks:

Mis su nimi on?

you can answer:

Minu nimi on Laura.

My name is Laura.

In ordinary conversation, an even simpler response is:

Ma olen Laura.

I'm Laura.

Both are correct.

3. Try It

Someone asks:

Mis su nimi on?

Answer with your own name:

Now answer using the other pattern:

For example:

Ma olen Laura.

or:

Minu nimi on Laura.

4. Sina and Sa — You

Estonian has both:

sina

and:

sa

Both mean:

you

Compare:

Full form	Short form	English
mina	ma	I
sina	sa	you

The short forms:

ma

and:

sa

are very common in everyday conversation.

5. Ma and Mina

The normal neutral form in conversation is:

Ma olen Anna.

The full form:

Mina olen Anna.

adds emphasis.

It can be useful when contrasting people:

Tema on Karl. Mina olen Anna.

He is Karl. I am Anna.

For an ordinary introduction, prefer:

Ma olen Anna.

6. Quick Choice

Which means:

you

A. ma B. sa C. mu

Check

B. sa

Which is the full form of sa?

A. sina B. sinu C. mina

Check

A. sina

7. Minu and Sinu

You already know:

minu — my

Now learn:

sinu — your

Compare:

minu nimi

my name

sinu nimi

your name

8. Mu and Su

The common shorter forms are:

minu → mu

sinu → su

So:

Full form	Short form	Meaning
minu	mu	my
sinu	su	your

This explains:

Mis su nimi on?

where:

su

means:

your

9. Match the Forms

Match each word with its meaning.

ma
sa
minu
sinu
mu
su

Meanings:

A. your — short B. I C. my — full D. you E. your — full F. my — short

Check

1 → B 2 → D 3 → C 4 → E 5 → F 6 → A

10. Build the Question

Put these words in the correct order:

nimi / su / mis / on

Check

Mis su nimi on?

Now say it again without looking at the word list.

11. And You? — Ja sina?

After answering, you can return the question with:

Ja sina?

Meaning:

And you?

Example:

Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen Emma. Ja sina?

Ma olen Karl.

This is a simple, neutral way to return the question.

12. Aga sina?

You may also hear:

Aga sina?

This often has a slightly more contrastive feeling:

What about you?

For example:

Mina elan Tallinnas. Aga sina?

I live in Tallinn. What about you?

Both expressions are useful, but for a simple name exchange we will normally use:

Ja sina?

13. A Natural Name Exchange

Tere! Mis su nimi on?

Hello! What's your name?

Ma olen Emma. Ja sina?

I'm Emma. And you?

Ma olen Karl.

I'm Karl.

This is short and natural.

14. A Slightly More Formal Answer

You can also say:

Mis su nimi on?

Minu nimi on Emma. Ja sinu nimi?

My name is Emma. And your name?

This is grammatically correct, but in an ordinary casual conversation:

Ja sina?

is shorter and more natural.

15. Your Turn

Someone says:

Ma olen Liis. Ja sina?

Respond:

A natural answer is:

Ma olen ________.

Use your own name.

16. Who Says What?

Decide whether each line is a question or an answer.

1.

Mis su nimi on?

2.

Ma olen Laura.

3.

Ja sina?

4.

Minu nimi on Martin.

Check

Question
Answer
Return question
Answer

17. Complete the Conversation

Use:

Ma olen Daniel.
Mis su nimi on?
Ja sina?

Tere! __________

Ma olen Emma. __________

Check

Tere! Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen Emma. Ja sina?

Ma olen Daniel.

18. Conversation Puzzle

Put these lines in a natural order:

Ma olen Robert.

Ma olen Kaisa. Ja sina?

Tere!

Tere! Mis su nimi on?

Check

Tere!

Tere! Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen Kaisa. Ja sina?

Ma olen Robert.

19. Replace the Names

Read:

Tere! Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen Mari. Ja sina?

Ma olen Jaan.

Now replace Mari and Jaan with two other names.

Then repeat the conversation using your own name.

20. Recognize the Phrase

What does:

Mis su nimi on?

mean?

A. Where do you live? B. What is your name? C. How are you?

Check

B. What is your name?

Try to recognize the whole expression rather than translating every word separately.

21. Choose the Natural Response

Someone asks:

Mis su nimi on?

Which response fits?

Aitäh!

Ma olen Erik.

Ma elan Tallinnas.

Check

B. Ma olen Erik.

Someone says:

Ma olen Anna. Ja sina?

Which response fits?

Ma olen Mark.

Head aega.

Palun aeglasemalt.

Check

A. Ma olen Mark.

22. Correct the Conversation

This response does not fit the question.

Mis su nimi on?

Ma elan Tallinnas.

Replace B's response.

Possible answers

Ma olen Laura.

or:

Minu nimi on Laura.

23. Fix the Word

My name

___ nimi

A. minu B. sinu C. sa

Check

minu nimi

Your name

___ nimi

A. ma B. su C. mu

Check

su nimi

You

A. sa B. ma C. minu

Check

sa

24. English → Estonian Challenge

Try before checking.

What is your name?

Check:

Mis su nimi on?

I'm Anna.

Check:

Ma olen Anna.

My name is Anna.

Check:

Minu nimi on Anna.

And you?

Check:

Ja sina?

25. Estonian → English Challenge

Mis su nimi on?

?

Check: What is your name?

Ma olen Eva.

?

Check: I'm Eva.

Minu nimi on Eva.

?

Check: My name is Eva.

Ja sina?

?

Check: And you?

26. Choose the Missing Word

1.

Mis ___ nimi on?

A. ma B. su C. minu

Check:

su

2.

___ nimi on Laura.

A. Minu B. Mina C. Sa

Check:

Minu

3.

Ja ___?

A. nimi B. sina C. minu

Check:

sina

27. Formal vs Informal — A First Look

So far, you have learned:

Mis su nimi on?

This is informal singular speech.

It uses:

sa / su

Estonian also has polite and plural forms:

te / teie

You will study these properly later in this module.

For now:

sa / su → informal singular

28. Meeldiv tutvuda! — Nice to Meet You!

After introductions, a standard expression is:

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Meaning:

Nice to meet you!

EKI gives this expression specifically for situations where people are introduced to one another.

Example:

Ma olen Anna.

Ma olen Martin. Meeldiv tutvuda!

Meeldiv tutvuda!

29. A More Natural Complete Exchange

Tere! Ma olen Karl.

Hello! I'm Karl.

Tere! Ma olen Emma.

Hello! I'm Emma.

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Nice to meet you!

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Nice to meet you!

Notice that once both people have introduced themselves, there is no need to ask:

Mis su nimi on?

30. When You Do Need to Ask the Name

If the other person has not introduced themselves:

Tere! Ma olen Karl.

Tere!

Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen Emma.

Meeldiv tutvuda!

This makes the conversation logically natural.

31. Build the Conversation

Use:

Tere!
Ma olen Laura.
Mis su nimi on?
Ma olen Erik.
Meeldiv tutvuda!

Create a natural conversation.

One possible version

Tere! Ma olen Laura. Mis su nimi on?

Tere! Ma olen Erik.

Meeldiv tutvuda!

32. Role-Play: New Colleague

A colleague says:

Tere! Ma olen Martin.

Respond naturally.

Possible response:

Tere! Ma olen ________.

Then say:

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Repeat the exchange without translating into English.

33. Role-Play: Language Class

Your teacher asks:

Mis su nimi on?

Respond:

Then turn to another learner and ask:

They answer:

Ma olen Laura. Ja sina?

Respond naturally.

34. Three-Second Challenge

Answer each prompt quickly.

Prompt

Mis su nimi on?

Your response:

Prompt

Ma olen Laura. Ja sina?

Your response:

Prompt

Someone introduces themselves to you.

Your response:

A natural final response is:

Meeldiv tutvuda!

35. Make It Personal

Answer in Estonian.

Mis su nimi on?

Introduce yourself another way.

Ask another person their name.

Say “Nice to meet you.”

Try all four before checking earlier sections.

36. Memory Challenge

Study these expressions:

Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen ...

Minu nimi on ...

Ja sina?

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Now hide them and try to reproduce all five.

The goal is to remember them as complete conversational units.

37. Mini Conversation Without English

Read:

Tere!

Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen Liis. Ja sina?

Ma olen Robert.

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Read it again naturally without translating each line.

38. Real-Life Mission

If you meet someone new in an appropriate informal situation, try:

Tere! Ma olen ________.

If they have not introduced themselves:

Mis su nimi on?

After introductions:

Meeldiv tutvuda!

The goal is to make the exchange automatic rather than to construct it word by word.

39. What You Should Remember

I

mina / ma

You

sina / sa

My

minu / mu

Your

sinu / su

What is your name?

Mis su nimi on?

I'm...

Ma olen ...

My name is...

Minu nimi on ...

And you?

Ja sina?

Nice to meet you!

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Final Conversation Challenge

Complete this conversation without looking back.

Tere! ________________________

Ma olen Laura. ________________________

Ma olen Martin.

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Check

A natural version is:

Tere! Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen Laura. Ja sina?

Ma olen Martin.

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Meeldiv tutvuda!

Lesson Summary

You can now have a natural basic name exchange in Estonian.

You learned:

mina / ma — I

sina / sa — you

minu / mu — my

sinu / su — your

and the core conversation:

Mis su nimi on?

Ma olen ...

Ja sina?

Ma olen ...

Meeldiv tutvuda!

You also learned that full pronoun forms often add emphasis, so ordinary conversation generally prefers:

Ma olen ...

rather than:

Mina olen ...

unless you specifically want to emphasize I.

In the next lesson:

Where Are You From?

you will learn how to ask where someone is from, answer naturally, distinguish where you are from from where you live, and begin working with country forms such as:

Eesti → Eestist

Soome → Soomest