你是哪里人？
nǐ shì nǎ lǐ rén ？
Where are you from · trad. 你是哪裡人？
你是哪里人？ (nǐ shì nǎlǐ rén?) is the most common and natural way to ask someone "where are you from?" in Mandarin Chinese, referring to their hometown or nationality.
When to use it
Neutral and polite. It's suitable for most social situations. To reply, you can say "我是[地方]人" (wǒ shì [dìfāng] rén), meaning "I am a person from [place]," or "我来自[地方]" (wǒ lái zì [dìfāng]), meaning "I come from [place]."
How to pronounce it
Sounds roughly like "nee shuh NAH-lee ren?" The "shì" is a falling tone, "nǎ" is a third tone, "lǐ" is a third tone (often lightened due to tone sandhi with "nǎ"), and "rén" is a rising tone.
Other ways to say it
- 你是哪国人？nǐ shì nǎ guó rén ？what nationality are you? (more specific to country)
- 你从哪里来？nǐ cóng nǎ lǐ lái ？where did you come from? (more literal, can refer to physical origin)
- 你老家在哪儿？nǐ lǎo jiā zài nǎ ér ？where's your hometown? (more casual, often for ancestral or childhood home)
Examples
你好，你是哪里人？
nǐ hǎo ， nǐ shì nǎ lǐ rén ？
Hello, where are you from?
请问，你是哪里人？
qǐng wèn ， nǐ shì nǎ lǐ rén ？
Excuse me, where are you from?
我是中国人，你是哪里人？
wǒ shì zhōng guó rén ， nǐ shì nǎ lǐ rén ？
I'm Chinese, where are you from?
Pro tip: While 你从哪里来？ is a direct translation of "where are you from?", 你是哪里人？ is often more natural when asking about someone's origin or hometown, as "人" (rén) in this context means "a person from [place]". For example, "我是北京人" means "I am a Beijinger."
Related phrases
和平 · Peace钱 · Money闭嘴 · Shut up
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