Cyrus was born on November 23, 1992 in
Nashville, Tennessee to parents Leticia "Tish" (
née Finley) Cyrus and country singer
Billy Ray Cyrus.
[4] Her parents named her Destiny Hope because they believed that she would accomplish great things with her life. They gave her the nickname "Smiley", which was later shortened to "Miley", because she smiled so often as a baby.
[5] Cyrus suffers from a mild heart condition causing
tachycardia which, though not dangerous, is often bothersome.
[6]
Against the wishes of her father's record company, Cyrus's parents secretly married a month after Cyrus's birth on December 28, 1992.
[7] The marriage gave Cyrus three half-siblings:
Trace and Brandi, Tish's children from a previous relationship, and Christopher Cody, Billy Ray's son from a previous relationship. Billy Ray adopted Trace and Brandi when they were toddlers
[8] and paid child support for Cody, who was also born in 1992 and grew up with his mother in South Carolina.
[7] The couple later gave birth to Cyrus's two younger siblings, Braison and
Noah. Cyrus's godmother is entertainer
Dolly Parton.
[9] Cyrus was very close to her paternal grandfather,
Democratic politician
Ronald Ray Cyrus.
[10] Cyrus has paid her grandfather several tributes since his death in 2006, including eventually changing her middle name to "Ray".
[11] According to Cyrus's father, "A lot of people say Miley changed her name to Miley Ray because of Billy Ray, but that's not true. She did that in honor of my dad, because the two of them just loved each other to pieces."
[6]
Cyrus grew up on a 500-acre (2.0 km2) farm in
Franklin, Tennessee, approximately an hour away from Nashville,
[12] and attended Heritage Elementary School.
[13] She was raised Christian and was baptized in a
Southern Baptist church prior to moving to Hollywood in 2005. She attended church regularly while growing up and wore a
purity ring.
[14] Cyrus displayed an affinity for performing as a toddler, although she would not seriously consider acting until she was eight. Several of Cyrus's siblings also eventually entered the entertainment business: Trace became a vocalist and guitarist for the electronic pop band
Metro Station,
[15] Noah became an actress, and Brandi became a guitarist.
[16
