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Topics: Celebrity, Melania Trump
Rhianna Benson
Topics: Celebrity, Melania Trump
Fans of Melania Trump might be surprised to hear that the incoming First Lady has changed her name not once, but twice, throughout the duration of her time in the public eye.
Yes, her surname was amended when she wed politician Donald Trump back in 2005 - but it also changed somewhat in the years prior, following her emergence as an up-and-coming model.
Melania, 54, and her president-elect husband will return to the White House on 20 January - four years after Trump's first stint in the Oval Office came to an end.
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Following his victory against Democratic leader Kamala Harris back in November, the 78-year-old will succeed current US leader Joe Biden, with the couple's 18-year-old son Barron joining them in the White House move.
As was the case during his first presidency in 2017, recent political events have once again turned a huge amount of attention to Melania.
In the last week alone, reports allege that she's set to star in her own Amazon docu-series about her childhood in Slovenia, and she made an admission about her biggest regret from Trump's first presidency.
Another interesting part to Melania's character is her name which, as we say, has altered quite a lot since she was born in Novo Mesto, Slovenia, in 1970.
At that point, her home country was known as Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, before being divided into Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia.
Melania was actually born Melanija Knavs - the first name of which, comes from the Greek words mélas and mélaina, and means 'dark' or 'black' - to her father Viktor Knavs and mother Amalij.
At the age of 16, however, Melanija started modelling and opted to change her surname to the German version, Knauss.
It was also around this time that the future First Lady decided to drop the 'J' from her first name, going from Melanija, to simply, Melania.
This is still the spelling she uses to this day - except, of course, she now goes by Melania Trump following her Bethesda-by-the-Sea wedding in Palm Beach, Florida.
The couple met in 1998 at a New York Fashion Week party, and after several years of on-off dating, Trump proposed on her birthday as they were leaving to attend the Met Gala in 2004.
The revelation regarding Melania's name change comes after the socialite revealed where she and her son would live while her husband is president, lifting the lid on some pretty unconventional arrangements.
Speaking to Fox News on Monday (13 January), Melania explained that she and Barron would be splitting their time between three locations; Washington DC, New York City, and Palm Beach in Florida over the next four years.
However, she'll reportedly be making one of those three homes her main residence.
When asked where she'll be spending the most time once Trump is officially inaugurated, Melania revealed: "I will be in the White House. And when I need to be in New York, I will be in New York.
"When I need to be in Palm Beach, I will be in Palm Beach. My first priority is to be a mum, to be a first lady, to be a wife."