With their daughter's name, Irina Shayk and Bradley Cooper honored her paternal grandmother, Galina. "My father's mother was one of the strongest women in my life," she told Harper's Bazaar in 2019, explaining it inspired their girl's first name, Lea. Galina, who died in in 2013, four years before Lea was born, was no ordinary babushka. Galina fought against the Nazis in World War II, acting as a spy for the Soviet Union's Red Army's intelligence branch under Joseph Stalin, according to the Daily Mail.
But Galina was also more than a war hero. She helped raise Shayk after her father — a coal miner — died from lung disease when she was 14. By then, both of her grandfathers had already died. "We never had men around," she said. Her upbringing motivated her to take the reins of her future. "It was really inspiring to grow up in a women's family because you learn so much from the strong women in your life," she said.
As for the other half of the name, those who guessed Shayk and Cooper paid homage to the French capital hit the nail on the head. "The second part is the Seine, like the river in Paris," Shayk said. Shayk didn't delve deeper into its significance, but Paris is where they made their debut as a couple in March 2016. Sounds like the City of Lights holds a special place in both of their hearts.
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