How to Extract a Name from a Sentence in Excel: A Comprehensive Guide

Extracting a name from a sentence in Excel can be a bit tricky, especially when dealing with sentences that have complex structures. This article will guide you through the process using both formulas and VBA code. Whether you are working with a simple sentence or a more complex one, this step-by-step guide will help you achieve your goal efficiently.

Using Formulas to Extract a Name

If the name in the sentence is clearly at the beginning and is separated by a space, using a combination of MID, FIND, and LEN functions can be very effective. Here’s how:

Example Scenario

For instance, if you have the sentence:

A1: John Doe is a software engineer.

Steps to Extract the Name

Identify the position of the first space in the sentence:

FIND(" ", A1)

Place this formula in another cell to find the position of the first space.

Use the LEFT function to extract the name from the beginning of the sentence up to the first space:

LEFT(A1, FIND(" ", A1) - 1)

This formula will give you the first name.

To extract the last name, use the MID function:

MID(A1, FIND(" ", A1)   1, LEN(A1) - FIND(" ", A1))

This formula will give you the last name.

Notes

These formulas assume that the name is clearly at the beginning and is separated by a space. If the name is more complex or the structure of the sentence is different, you may need to adjust the formulas accordingly.

For more advanced text extraction, consider using Excel’s TEXTSPLIT function if you have Excel 365. This function can significantly simplify the process.

Using VBA for Advanced Name Extraction

If the name structure is more complex or you need more advanced text extraction, you can use VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) code. Here’s how you can do it:

Follow these steps:

Ensure your workbook is saved as an XLSM or XLSB file. Excel for Android, Excel for the iPad, and some versions of Excel for Mac may not support VBA properly.

Press Alt F11 to open the VBA Editor.

In the VBA menu, choose Insert Module.

Copy and paste the following code into the module:

Function GetName(MyCell As Range) As Range    Dim OriginalText As String    Dim WordArray() As String    OriginalText      WordArray  Split(OriginalText, " ")    Dim Ctr As Integer    Dim i As Integer    Ctr  0    For i  1 To UBound(WordArray)        ThisWord  WordArray(i)        Select Case Asc(ThisWord)            Case 65 To 90                Ctr  Ctr   1                If Ctr  1 Then                    GetName  ThisWord                Else                    GetName  Chr(32)  ThisWord                End If        End Select    Next iEnd Function

Press File Close and Return to Microsoft Excel.

Use the formula GetName(A2) to extract the name from the sentence in cell A2 and copy it down for all sentences.

Notes

This VBA code is designed to skip the first word of the sentence and look for capitalized names within the sentence. It assumes that the capitalized name is not the first word in the sentence.

Ensure that your Excel version supports VBA and that you have the workbook saved as an XLSM or XLSB file. This method can handle more complex name structures and maintain the integrity of the text extraction process.

Conclusion

Whether you choose to use formulas or VBA code, both methods can help you extract names from sentences efficiently in Excel. The choice between the two largely depends on the complexity of your data and your familiarity with VBA.

Resources and Further Reading

Text Functions in Excel

Running VBA Code in Excel

Advanced Name Extraction Examples in Excel