lui + Name

Lui with Names

Level 2

Use lui with masculine personal names and certain feminine names, such as lui Andrei and lui Carmen. Other names inflect, as in Mariei; the rule is not universal for all proper names.

How It Works

In Romanian, most nouns show their grammatical case (like possession) by adding a suffix at the end. However, proper names are treated differently to keep the name recognizable. The word lui acts as a 'proclitic' article, meaning it sits in front of the name.

When to use it:

  • Masculine Names: Used for most male names (e.g., lui Andrei, lui Popescu). Masculine names ending in -a also normally use lui: lui Mircea, lui Luca. Do not derive feminine case endings from their final letter.
  • Feminine Names (Non-a): Used for female names that do not end in the typical '-a' sound (e.g., lui Carmen, lui Alice).
  • Surnames and Foreign Names: Lui acts as a universal adapter for surnames used alone and for foreign names that are difficult to inflect (e.g., lui Smith, lui Hans).
  • Months: Used when the month is in the genitive or dative case (e.g., sfârșitul lui martie). It is not used after the preposition în (e.g., în martie).

Place Names: This personal-name rule should not be applied automatically to city names. Use an established inflected place name, such as străzile Parisului, or an explicit noun, such as centrul orașului Tokyo. Foreign place names do not generally take lui merely because they lack the ending -a.

Grammatical Functions:
1. Genitive (Possession): Indicates who something belongs to. If the possessed object is already definite, just use lui. If it is indefinite, you need the possessive article (al/a/ai/ale) as well.
2. Dative (Indirect Object): Indicates the person receiving something. In this case, the usual conversational pattern also uses indirect object clitics (like îi or i-) to double the object.

Examples (4)

  1. Aceasta este mașina lui Andrei.

    This is Andrei's car.

    Word by Word: This is car-the of-him Andrei.

    Here, 'lui' marks the Genitive case (possession) for the masculine name Andrei.

  2. I-am dat cartea lui Carmen.

    I gave the book to Carmen.

    Word by Word: To-her I-have given book-the to Carmen.

    Since 'Carmen' does not end in '-a', it uses 'lui' for the Dative case. Note the clitic 'i-' doubling the object.

  3. Succesul lui Popescu ne-a surprins.

    Popescu's success surprised us.

    Word by Word: Success-the of-him Popescu us-has surprised.

    Surnames always use 'lui' to indicate possession.

  4. O prietenă a lui Ion vine diseară.

    A friend of Ion's is coming tonight.

    Word by Word: A friend (fem.) of of-him Ion comes tonight.

    When the possessed noun ('o prietenă') is indefinite, we use the possessive article 'a' before 'lui'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'lui' for feminine names ending in '-a'.

    Casa lui Maria.
    Casa Mariei.

    In standard Romanian, this personal name inflects: Maria → Mariei. Lui Maria is a widespread colloquial pattern, while names such as Carmen use lui in the standard language.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

lui + NameLevel 2Lui with Names

Learn This First

To understand 'lui' with proper names, you need to be familiar with how Romanian marks nouns as definite and how possession is expressed generally. Since 'lui' acts as a special marker for masculine names to show possession or indirect relations, knowing noun genders is also crucial.

Words in This Pattern

lui