{"id":272814,"date":"2026-01-31T00:03:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T00:03:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/272814\/"},"modified":"2026-01-31T00:03:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T00:03:10","slug":"what-to-know-about-melania-trumps-parents-viktor-and-amalija-knavs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/272814\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Know About Melania Trump’s Parents Viktor and Amalija Knavs"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEED TO KNOW<\/p>\n

Melania Trump’s parents are Viktor and Amalija Knavs<\/p>\n

The first lady was raised in a small town in Slovenia<\/p>\n

Melania’s parents moved to the U.S. in the early 2000s and later used family-based immigration policies to become citizens, which President Donald Trump has since attempted to eliminate<\/p>\n

Melania Trump<\/a> was raised by her parents, Viktor and Amalija Knavs, in Slovenia.<\/p>\n

The first lady, who’s the subject of the January 2026 documentary Melania<\/a>, grew up with her sister, Ines, and their parents in the town of Sevnica, about an hour from the capital of then-Communist Yugoslavia. Viktor worked as a chauffeur and car salesman, while Amalija was a patternmaker<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After Melania married President Donald Trump<\/a> in 2005, her parents moved to the U.S. to support them and help raise their son, Barron Trump<\/a>, who was born in 2006. Viktor and Amalija became U.S. citizens<\/a> in 2018 \u2014 amid their son-in-law’s focus on immigration policy reform<\/a> \u2014 and lived in New York, Washington D.C. and Florida.<\/p>\n

Amalija died in January 2024<\/a> at the age of 78 after an undisclosed illness.<\/p>\n

Here is everything to know about Melania Trump\u2019s parents, Viktor and Amalija Knavs.<\/p>\n

They met in Slovenia in the 1960s\"MelaniaMelania Trump’s parents Viktor and Amalija Knavs on June 18, 2017 in Washington, DC. <\/p>\n

MANDEL NGAN\/AFP\/Getty<\/p>\n

Viktor and Amalija met in Slovenia (when it was still a part of then-Yugoslavia) in 1966, according to GQ<\/a>. The couple eventually moved into an apartment in the small, hilly town of Sevnica.<\/p>\n

At the time, Viktor was a member of the Sevnica Communist Party and worked as a chauffeur \u2014 first for the mayor of a neighboring town and then for the head of the government-owned textile factory, Jutranjka, The New York Times<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Amalija worked at that same textile factory as a patternmaker from 1964 until her retirement in 1997, per The New Yorker<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They had two daughters together\"MelaniaMelania Trump with her older sister Ines Knauss attend the Valentino Fashion Luncheon benefitting Boy’s Club of New York at Mar-a-Lago February 4, 2005 in Palm Beach Florida. <\/p>\n

Lucien Capehart Photography, Inc\/Getty<\/p>\n

Viktor and Amalija welcomed two children during their relationship: Ines<\/a>, who was born in 1968, followed by Melania \u2014\u00a0born Melanija \u2014 in 1970. Viktor also has a son, Denis Cigelnjak, from a previous relationship \u2014\u00a0though he has never acknowledged him despite a paternity test proving his parentage, according to GQ.<\/p>\n

Ines and Melania were raised in Sevnica and Ljubljana, Slovenia\u2019s capital, but traveled to France, Italy and Germany for vacations. The family eventually moved from their apartment in Sevnica to a home in one of the town\u2019s wealthiest neighborhoods, per GQ.<\/p>\n

Around the same time, Viktor arranged for Melania and her sister to live with him in Ljubljana, where they attended design school.<\/p>\n

Amalija worked in the fashion industry\"MelaniaMelania Trump’s mom Amalija Knavs. <\/p>\n

Melania Trump Instagram<\/p>\n

Amalija first worked on her parents\u2019 onion farm before taking a job at the state textile factory, Jutranjka, The New York Times<\/a> reported. She eventually earned a position as a patternmaker at the children\u2019s clothing factory, which she held for over three decades from 1964 to 1997.<\/p>\n

In addition to her factory work, Amalija (whose mother was also a seamstress) would sew clothes for herself and her kids. It was Amalija\u2019s career that first exposed Melania to the world of fashion and modeling.<\/p>\n

According to a 2019 book by Betty Boyd Caroli, Amalija was the one who \u201claid the foundation\u201d for Melania\u2019s future in the fashion world.<\/p>\n

She wrote, \u201cWhen [her textile company] enlisted young girls as informal models for their latest children\u2019s fashions, Amalija arranged for Melanija to walk the runway.\u201d<\/p>\n

Viktor was a traveling car salesman\"ViktorViktor Knavs and Donald Trump walk on the South Lawn of the White House on May 4, 2025. <\/p>\n

Chris Kleponis\/CNP\/Bloomberg via Getty<\/p>\n

After working as a chauffeur, Viktor became a traveling car salesman for the state-owned car company, GQ reported. He also opened his own bicycle and car parts shop in Ljubljana, according to The New York Times.<\/p>\n

Melania compared her father\u2019s business sense to her husband’s, calling them both \u201chardworking\u201d to GQ.<\/p>\n

Donald has also spoken about his father-in-law\u2019s career.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was pretty successful over there,\u201d he told The New York Times, referencing Viktor\u2019s career in Slovenia. \u201cIt\u2019s a different kind of success than you have here. But he was successful.\u201d<\/p>\n

They were close in age to their son-in-law\"EricEric Trump, Viktor and Amalija Knavs and Donald Trump on October 24, 2006 at the Mar-a-Lago estate. <\/p>\n

Davidoff Studios\/Getty<\/p>\n

Donald is closer in age to Melania\u2019s parents than he is to Melania herself: Viktor, Amalija and Donald are all born within two years of one another, while Donald is 24 years older than Melania.<\/p>\n

Viktor was born on March 24, 1944, and Amalija was born on July 9, 1945. Donald was born on June 14, 1946 \u2014 less than one year after his future-mother-in-law.<\/p>\n

They spent time living in the White House\"MelaniaMelania Trump’s parents Viktor Knavs and Amalija Knavs step off off Air Force One upon arrival in Morristown, New Jersey on June 30, 2017. <\/p>\n

MANDEL NGAN\/AFP\/Getty<\/p>\n

During Donald’s first term as president, Viktor and Amalija lived in the White House part-time, in the suite once occupied by former President Barack Obama<\/a>\u2019s mother, The New York Times<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n

In addition to the White House, the Knavs split their time between an apartment in Trump Tower in New York and Donald’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.<\/p>\n

Despite their multiple residences in the U.S., the couple maintained their ties to Slovenia. As of 2016, Viktor and Amalija still owned their house in Sevnica and visited two to three times per year, according to GQ.<\/p>\n

They became U.S. citizens in 2018\"ViktorViktor and Amalija Knavs depart the White House in Washington, DC, on November 26, 2019. <\/p>\n

JIM WATSON\/AFP via Getty<\/p>\n

Viktor and Amalija received their U.S. citizenship in August 2018 in a private ceremony in New York.<\/p>\n

Melania sponsored her parents\u2019 green cards, and then Viktor and Amalija applied for citizenship once they were eligible, their lawyer, Michael Wildes, told The New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Immigration law requires individuals to have their green cards for at least five years before they can apply for citizenship. Wildes confirmed to the outlet that the Knavs had met the requirement.<\/p>\n

The legal process through which Viktor and Amalija obtained their citizenship was one that Donald pushed to eliminate during his first term. Known as chain migration or family-based immigration, the program allows U.S. citizens to sponsor immediate family members for legal residency.<\/p>\n

While his parents-in-law were in the process, Donald repeatedly called for chain migration to be terminated, posting in September 2017 on X<\/a>, \u201cCHAIN MIGRATION cannot be allowed to be part of any legislation on Immigration!\u201d<\/p>\n

In January 2018, Donald also proposed ending most family-based immigration and replacing it with a system prioritizing “skilled immigrants.” Under his plan, immigrants would be limited to sponsoring only spouses and underage children \u2014\u00a0as opposed to parents (like Viktor and Amalija) and other adult family members.<\/p>\n

In 2026, when one of Donald’s policies paused issuing immigrant visas to people from 75 countries, including Afghanistan, Brazil, the Bahamas, Russia and Haiti, it directly affected immigrants trying to reunite their families legally in the U.S., per News West 9<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Amalija died in January 2024\"MelaniaMelania Trump, Barron Trump and Donald Trump attend Amalija Knavs’ funeral in January 2024. <\/p>\n

GIORGIO VIERA\/AFP via Getty<\/p>\n

On Jan. 9, 2024, Melania announced that her mother, Amalija, had died at the age of 78.<\/p>\n

On New Year’s Eve, Donald revealed that Melania was absent from recent family holiday gatherings because she was tending to her mother, who was \u201cvery ill<\/a>\u201d and in the hospital, according to his description.<\/p>\n

Melania delivered her mother\u2019s eulogy at her funeral, which was held at The Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea in Palm Beach and attended by Viktor, Donald and Barron \u2014\u00a0as well as Tiffany Trump<\/a>, Ivanka Trump<\/a> and Jared Kushner<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Melania attended Jimmy Carter’s funeral on the anniversary of her mother’s death<\/p>\n

In her 2026 documentary, Melania, the first lady spoke about attending the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter in Washington, D.C., on the one-year anniversary of Amalija’s death, calling it a “heavy” day.<\/p>\n

Melania said that her mother was on her mind throughout the service, and added that she later lit a candle in Amalija’s honor at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.<\/p>\n

Viktor attended Donald’s inauguration in January 2025\"UshaUsha Vance, Viktor Knavs, Barron Trump and Melania Trump at Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. <\/p>\n

Saul Loeb – Pool\/Getty<\/p>\n

On Jan. 20, 2025, Donald was sworn in as the 47th president<\/a> of the United States. Viktor attended the ceremony in Washington D.C., alongside Melania and his grandson, Barron.<\/p>\n

Read the original article on People<\/a><\/p>\n