In the sentence "My youngest brother, Julian, is already taller than I am," the phrase "Julian" is considered nonrestrictive (or nonessential) because it provides additional information about the subject "my youngest brother" but is not necessary to identify who that subject is.
The phrase "my youngest brother" is already specific enough to indicate that there is one youngest brother in the speaker's family. The name "Julian" adds more detail but does not change the fundamental meaning of the sentence; even if the name were omitted, the overall statement would still be clear: the youngest brother is taller than the speaker.
In English grammar, nonrestrictive clauses or phrases are typically set off by commas, as they provide extra information that can be removed without altering the core meaning of the sentence. In this case, the sentence would still communicate the essential information ("My youngest brother is already taller than I am") without the name "Julian." Therefore, the phrase is nonrestrictive.
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