Ian Joseph Somerhalder[1] 

was born on December 8, 1978, [2][3] in Covington, Louisiana,[4][5] the second

of three children of Edna, a massage therapist from Mississippi,[6] and Robert Somerhalder Sr., an
independent building contractor.[7][8]: 2  He has an older brother, Robert, and a younger sister, Robyn.[8]: 2 
[9]
 His paternal grandfather's biological father, a landowner in England, whose mistress became
pregnant, paid off one of his immigrant workers, whose surname was Somerhalder, to marry her and
take the newborn baby far away.[8] His paternal grandmother was French.[1][8]: 2–3 [10][11] His mother has
Irish ancestry; her maternal grandfather was Choctaw.[6][8]: 2–3 [10] He lived with his mother after his
parents divorced[1] when he was 14.[8]: 3 
Somerhalder attended Saint Paul's School, a private school in Covington.[12] He embarked on a
modeling career from age 10 to 13,[13] and by the age of 17 he decided to go into acting.