The use of "A" before a name of a person or a pronoun

The use of "A" before a name of a person or a pronoun. Ex. A Maria le gusta bailar. Is it wrong to say/write: Maria le gusta bailar. Why do you have to use an "A" before the name? And if you talk directly to a person whos name is for ex: David. Is it correct then to say: David, puedes abrir tu libro? Puedes abrir tu libro, David? Can both questions be used?

[quo]*Quote:* Is it wrong to say/write: Maria le gusta bailar. Why do you have to use an "A" before the name[/quo] As far as I know, you don't . The way you wrote it is correct If you are talking about the personal " a ", this one comes between the verb and the name/person/persons. Quiero visitar a Maria Quiero visitar a mis amigos Necesito ayudar a mi papa Might be wrong here, but that's the way I use it Is this what you wanted to know ? As for ....David.....Yes, I think both are OK, as far as my knowledge goes

Hola tuba. To supplement what Antonio has said, you may find it helpful to take a look at two fairly brief discussions on the StudySpanish.com web site. One discussion deals with the "personal a": *__http://studyspanish.com/lessons/persa.htm__*. The other discussion deals with "Verbs Like Gustar," and toward the end of the discussion it includes some examples like the one you asked about: *__http://studyspanish.com/lessons/gustar.htm__* I hope this helps.

Thank you, I am not sure if I understand, but it seems to me that they use the prepositional phrase to clarify, but for me it would also be clarifying if they didn't use the "A" but only the name. instead of : A Juan le gusta leer. -> Juan le gusta leer. Does spanishtalking people use the "A" before Juan or not when they talk?