section_path: Early life and education
section_name: Early life and education
paragraph_text: Early life and education
  
  Melanija Knavs was born in Novo Mesto, Yugoslavia (which later became part of the nation of Slovenia) on April 26, 1970. Her father, Viktor Knavs, first worked as a chauffeur; eventually, he sold car parts for a state-owned vehicle manufacturer as he made connections with the League of Communists of Yugoslavia. Her mother, Amalija Knavs, worked as a patternmaker at the children's clothing manufacturer Jutranjka in Sevnica. In Sevnica, the family lived in the state-run housing complex Naselje Heroja Maroka. Melanija has an older sister, Ines, and an older half-brother from her father's previous relationship, Denis Cigelnjak, whom she reportedly has never met. Her father denied paternity of Denis even after it was confirmed by a paternity test.
  
  Melanija's father was a member of Yugoslavia's communist party, which espoused a policy of state atheism. Nevertheless, he--like many others--had his daughters secretly baptized as Roman Catholic. The family was well-off relative to most who lived in communist societies. They frequently went on vacations to other parts of Europe. Their apartment was atypically decorated with brightly colored walls.
  
  As a child, Melanija, like other children of workers at the factory, participated in fashion shows that featured children's clothing. Textiles were Sevnica's primary industry. Students were excused from school to participate in the shows. From a young age, Melanija expressed an interest in fashion, and she began customizing and sewing her own clothes. She developed a skill for it by watching her mother work. Melanija did well in school, where she was appointed school treasurer.
  
  When Melanija was a teenager, she moved to a two-story house in Sevnica with her family. From her youth in Slovenia, Melanija was influenced by the United States. She described the presidency of Ronald Reagan as the beginning of a new era in her own country. Also, the debut of CNN International in 1985 gave her family access to American media. Of particular interest to Melanija was the new exposure to global fashion. At the age of fifteen, she began attending the Secondary School for Design and Photography in Ljubljana, making the long commute from her hometown to the capital and back each day by train. After her first year, she and Ines moved to the capital together in an apartment paid for by their father. After graduating at age nineteen, Melanija enrolled in the Faculty of Architecture and Civil and Geodetic Engineering at the University of Ljubljana to further study design, leaving after a few months without finishing her degree.
  
  Melanija Knavs was born in Novo Mesto, Yugoslavia (which later became part of the nation of Slovenia) on April 26, 1970. Her father, Viktor Knavs, first worked as a chauffeur; eventually, he sold car parts for a state-owned vehicle manufacturer as he made connections with the League of Communists of Yugoslavia. Her mother, Amalija Knavs, worked as a patternmaker at the children's clothing manufacturer Jutranjka in Sevnica. In Sevnica, the family lived in the state-run housing complex Naselje Heroja Maroka. Melanija has an older sister, Ines, and an older half-brother from her father's previous relationship, Denis Cigelnjak, whom she reportedly has never met. Her father denied paternity of Denis even after it was confirmed by a paternity test.
  
  Melanija's father was a member of Yugoslavia's communist party, which espoused a policy of state atheism. Nevertheless, he--like many others--had his daughters secretly baptized as Roman Catholic. The family was well-off relative to most who lived in communist societies. They frequently went on vacations to other parts of Europe. Their apartment was atypically decorated with brightly colored walls.
  
  As a child, Melanija, like other children of workers at the factory, participated in fashion shows that featured children's clothing. Textiles were Sevnica's primary industry. Students were excused from school to participate in the shows. From a young age, Melanija expressed an interest in fashion, and she began customizing and sewing her own clothes. She developed a skill for it by watching her mother work. Melanija did well in school, where she was appointed school treasurer.
  
  When Melanija was a teenager, she moved to a two-story house in Sevnica with her family. From her youth in Slovenia, Melanija was influenced by the United States. She described the presidency of Ronald Reagan as the beginning of a new era in her own country. Also, the debut of CNN International in 1985 gave her family access to American media. Of particular interest to Melanija was the new exposure to global fashion. At the age of fifteen, she began attending the Secondary School for Design and Photography in Ljubljana, making the long commute from her hometown to the capital and back each day by train. After her first year, she and Ines moved to the capital together in an apartment paid for by their father. After graduating at age nineteen, Melanija enrolled in the Faculty of Architecture and Civil and Geodetic Engineering at the University of Ljubljana to further study design, leaving after a few months without finishing her degree.