Russian has no present-tense form of "to be" and no words for "a" or "the". To say "I am Anna" or "he is a student", you simply put the two parts side by side, sometimes with a dash in writing when both are nouns.
Examples
- Я Анна.
- I am Anna.
- Он студент, а она врач.
- He is a student, and she is a doctor.
- Меня зовут Иван. А вас?
- My name is Ivan. And yours?
- Москва — большой город.
- Moscow is a big city.
The mistake to avoid
Learners insert есть or a form of быть ("Я есть студент"), which sounds wrong — leave the verb out entirely.
Where this fits in
Greetings & introductions, Russian A1: Say hello, give your name, ask someone else's, and where they're from.