Lesson Notes

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Lesson Focus

The focus of this lesson is Self Introduction in Polish

 

Topic 1: How to Introduce yourself in a informal situation

 

Sentence from the lesson:

'Cześć! Jestem Joanna.'
"Hi! I'm Joanna."


  2. Start by saying: Cześć! Jestem ...
  3. Say your name. Cześć! Jestem Joanna.
  4. If you want, say: Miło mi.

 


For Example:

Miło mi.
"Nice to meet you. (informal)"


Topic 2: How to Introduce yourself in a formal situation


Sentence from the lesson:

'Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Izumi. Miło mi Pana poznać. (talking to a male)
Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Izumi. Miło mi Panią poznać. (talking to a female)'
"Good day! My name is Joanna Izumi. Nice to meet you."

 

  1. Cześć has been substituted with the formal greeting Dzień dobry, Polish for "good day" or "good morning."
  2. Jestem Joanna also changed; jestem simply means "I am," however during a formal self introduction you should avoid saying this. It's better to say Nazywam się Joanna Izumi, which means "my name is Joanna Izumi."
  3. Also in formal situations, please remember to say your full name.
    4. Pay attention to the ending: we went from Miło mi Cię poznać to Miło mi Pana—or—Panią poznać. We changed Cię into Pana or Panią. If you use Cię you're addressing someone around your age. But if you find yourself in formal situation or talk to a person, who's older than you, use Pana, to address a man or Panią to address a woman.

 

Language Tip!

If you feel confused about the Nice to meet you part, feel free to skip it. As I mentioned before, Polish people don't use it much.When you introduce yourself, it's a good habit to shake hands. It doesn't matter whether you're meeting a man or a woman—do the handshake. Remember to make it quite firm. If your hand is too loose it gives the other person a bad impression. We also say that it feels like holding a dead fish.

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Lesson Transcript

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Welcome to PolishPod101.com’s “Polski w 3 minuty”. The fastest, easiest, and most fun way to learn Polish.
Cześć. Jestem Joanna. Miło Cię poznać.
Hi! I’m Joanna. Nice to meet you.
In this series, we’re going to learn basic Polish expressions. It’s super easy and it only takes three minutes!
In this lesson, you’re going to learn how to introduce yourself in Polish. We’ll start speaking right away, but first it is important to clarify that in Polish often there is a difference between formal and informal language.
Let’s first see how Polish people introduce themselves in an *informal* situation.
Cześć! Jestem Joanna. Hi! I’m Joanna.
[slowly] Cześć! Jestem Joanna.
Miło mi Cię poznać means “nice to meet you”, but Polish people don’t really use this phrase.
In *informal* situations it’s better if you just say Miło mi.
Start by saying: Cześć! Jestem ... then, say your name. Cześć! Jestem Joanna. Finally, if you want, say: Miło mi.
Cześć! Jestem Joanna. Miło mi.
And now let’s see the same sentence in formal speech:
Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Suchecka. Miło mi Pana poznać.
Good day! My name is Joanna Suchecka. Nice to meet you.
[slowly] Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Suchecka. Miło mi Pana poznać.
This is what you say, if you’re talking to a man.
If you’re talking to a woman, say:
Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Suchecka. Miło mi Panią poznać.
[slowly] Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Suchecka. Miło mi Panią poznać.
So, what has changed from the previous introduction? Let’s take a close look at these expressions together.
Cześć has been substituted with the formal greeting Dzień dobry, Polish for "good day" or “good morning”.
Jestem Joanna also changed; jestem simply means "I am," however during a formal self introduction you should avoid saying this. It’s better to say Nazywam się Joanna Suchecka, which means “my name is Joanna Suchecka”. Also in formal situations, please remember to say your full name.
Finally, pay attention to the ending: we went from Miło mi Cię poznać to Miło mi Pana - or - Panią poznać. We changed Cię into Pana or Panią. If you use Cię you’re addressing someone around your age. But if you find yourself in formal situation or talk to a person, who’s older than you, use Pana, to address a man or Panią to address a woman.
One more time: The informal way to introduce yourself in Polish is Cześć! Jestem Joanna. Miło mi. The formal way to introduce yourself is Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Izi. Miło mi Pana poznać.
or
Dzień dobry! Nazywam się Joanna Izumi. Miło mi Panią poznać.
Now it’s time for Joanna’s Insights.
If you feel confused about the Nice to meet you part, feel free to skip it. As I mentioned before, Polish people don’t use it much.
When you introduce yourself, it's a good habit to shake hands. It doesn’t matter whether you’re meeting a man or a woman - do the handshake. Remember to make it quite firm. If your hand is too loose it gives the other person a bad impression. We also say that it feels like holding a dead fish.
That’s it for this lesson! Do you know how we say “thank you” in Polish? You’ll learn how to say this and much more in the next lesson. Do zobaczenia!
See you!
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