Melania Trump, born Melanija Knavs on April 26, 1970, grew up in Sevnica, a small Slovenian town.
Her early love for fashion emerged as she repurposed clothes and dreamed of leaving. “Sevnica was too small for her,” recalled childhood friend Mirjana Jelancic, who described Melania as “very organised and disciplined.”
At 16, photographer Stane Jerko discovered Melania in Ljubljana. Though shy, she agreed to a photo shoot, launching her modeling career. She soon worked in Paris and Milan, learning several languages and adopting the name Melania Knauss. In 1996, she moved to New York to pursue modeling full-time.
In 1998, she met Donald Trump at a party. Though she initially declined to give her number, they began dating and later married in 2005. Their son Barron was born the next year. Melania left modeling behind and stepped into the spotlight as Trump’s wife.
