Why is there an “a” in “amo a mi familia”?

In Spanish, when the thing you love, see, or know is a person, you add a small a in front of it. So you say amo a mi familia (“I love my family”), not amo mi familia. This little a has no English translation — it is just a signal that a person comes next. You will also see it in este es mi amigo turning into quiero a mi amigo.

Compare veo la casa (“I see the house,” a thing) with veo a María (“I see María,” a person) — the person gets the a. The same clip says amo a mi familia; pets often get it too, because people treat them like family. It is one of the first beginner habits to build.