Lin Chi-ling is a Taiwanese actress, model, and television personality.
Lin Chi-ling was born on 29 November 1974 in Taipei, Taiwan. Lin's father, Lin Fan-nan (Chinese: 林繁男), and her mother, Wu Tzu-mei (Chinese: 吳慈美), are both from Tainan in southern Taiwan. Following their marriage, they moved to Taipei where Lin and her elder brother Lin Chi-hong (Chinese: 林志鴻) were born. Lin attended Taipei Municipal Zhongzheng Junior High School and at the age of 15 was discovered by model talent scout Lin Chien-huan (Chinese: 林健寰). She later attended Bishop Strachan School in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, then attended the University of Toronto until 1997, when she completed her bachelor degree, double-majoring in Western art history and economics.
After graduating from university, Lin returned to Taiwan. She intended to pursue a career in fine art and sought a position at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, but was turned away because she lacked a postgraduate degree in the field. Lin continued to model part-time before leaving the industry and working as an administrative assistant for the Fubon Cultural and Educational Foundation (富邦文教基金會). In 2000, Lin left Fubon and spent three months studying in Japan, then returned to Taiwan and modeling, with Catwalk Production House.
