Brief profile of the most powerful man in the US

By CNN Library

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama smiles and waves as the crowd sings "Happy Birthday" to him before his speech at the Lansing Center in Lansing, Michigan, on August 4, 2008.

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Obama turns 53 years old

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(CNN) -- Here's a look at the life of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States.

Personal:
Birth date: August 4, 1961

Birth place: Honolulu, Hawaii

Birth name: Barack Hussein Obama, Jr.

Father: Barack Hussein Obama, Kenyan government official and former goat herder

Mother: Stanley Ann (Dunham) Obama Soetoro, anthropologist

Marriage: Michelle (Robinson) Obama (October 3, 1992 - present)

Children: Natasha (Sasha), June 10, 2001, and Malia, July 4, 1998

Education: Columbia University, B.A., 1983, Harvard University, J.D., 1991

Religion: Christian

Other Facts:
The name Barack means "one who is blessed" in Swahili.

Is the first African-American to be president of the Harvard Law Review.

Timeline:
1964 - His parents divorce when Barack is two years old.

Late 1960s - Lives in Indonesia with mother and stepfather Lolo Soetoro.

1971 - Returns to Hawaii to live with his maternal grandparents and attend school.

November 24, 1982 - Barack Obama, Sr., dies in a car accident in Kenya.

1992-2004 - Practices civil rights law and teaches constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School.

November 7, 1995 - His mother, Stanley Ann (Dunham) Soetoro, 52, dies of ovarian cancer in Honolulu.

1995 - Publishes his autobiography "Dreams from my Father," in which he admits to experimenting with marijuana and cocaine as a teenager.

1997-2005 - Illinois State Senator, representing the 13th District.

2000 - Runs for the U.S. House seat in Illinois' 1st District and loses to former Black Panther Bobby Rush.

July 27, 2004 - Delivers the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention.

November 2004 - Wins the U.S. Senate race in Illinois, defeating Alan Keyes. It is the first time in history a Senate race is between two African-American candidates.

January 4, 2005 - Is sworn in as U.S. senator.

2006 - Wins a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album for his reading of "Dreams From My Father."

August 20 - September 3, 2006 - Tours five African countries, including a visit to Nyangoma-Kogelo, Kenya, his late father's hometown.

January 16, 2007 - Files papers with the FEC to form a presidential exploratory committee.

February 10, 2007 - Announces his candidacy for president at an event in Springfield, Illinois.

November 3, 2007 - Makes a surprise guest appearance on "Saturday Night Live," as himself.

January 3, 2008 - Wins the Iowa Democratic Caucuses with 38% of the vote.

February 10, 2008 - Wins his second Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for the audio version of his book, "The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream." Former President Bill Clinton and former President Jimmy Carter were also nominated.

March 18, 2008 - Makes a speech in Philadelphia defending his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who made racially-charged and anti-government comments during sermons.

June 3, 2008 - Secures enough delegates to win the nomination - 2,118 - after the South Dakota and Montana primaries.

June 19, 2008 - Announces he will not accept federal matching funds for his presidential campaign, foregoing $80 million dollars in federal money and a cap on how much he can spend.

August 23, 2008 - Chooses Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE) as his running mate and has first rally with Biden in Springfield, Illinois in front of the old state capitol.

August 27-28, 2008 - Is officially nominated as and accepts the nomination for president on the democratic ticket, becoming the first African American candidate in U.S. history to lead a major party.

November 3, 2008 - Grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, 86, dies in Hawaii after a long battle with cancer.

November 4, 2008 - Is elected president of the United States with an estimated 66.7 million popular votes and 365 electoral votes.

November 16, 2008 - Resigns his seat in the U.S. Senate.

December 17, 2008 - Is named Time Magazine's "Person of the Year."

January 20, 2009 - Is sworn in as the 44th president of the United States

January 22, 2009 - Issues executive orders regarding the closing of Guantanamo Bay, torture and creating a review of detention facilities and of individual cases.

April 6, 2009 - During a speech made in Turkey, is quoted as saying, "The United States is not, and will never be, at war with Islam."

April 7, 2009 - Makes a surprise trip to Iraq, his first as president.

October 9, 2009 - Is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

March 23, 2010 - Signs the health care reform bill into law.

March 28, 2010 - Makes a surprise visit to Afghanistan, the first as president.

July 21, 2010 - Signs the Wall Street reform bill into law.

August 31, 2010 - President Obama addresses the nation from the Oval Office to mark the end of U.S. combat operations in Iraq.

September 1-2, 2010 - Hosts meetings between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Washington, DC. Other leaders attending meeting are Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah II of Jordan.

April 27, 2011 - The White House releases President Obama's original birth certificate.

May 1, 2011 - In a televised press conference, Obama announces to the world that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has been killed in a raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

May 5, 2011 - Attends ceremony to honor victims of September 11th at Ground Zero. Lays a wreath, meets with first responders, families and colleagues of the victims. He also visits the "Pride of Midtown" firehouse, Engine 54, Ladder 9, Battalion 9, the unit that lost 15 men, the most of any one firehouse.

May 25, 2011 - Is the first U.S. president to address the U.K. Parliament.

October 21, 2011 - Announces the withdrawal of virtually all U.S. troops in Iraq by December 31, fulfilling a 2008 campaign pledge to end the war.

May 9, 2012 - Excerpts from an interview with ABC air in which Obama endorses same-sex marriage. He is the first U.S. president to do so. He also says the legal decision should be up to the states.

June 15, 2012 - Issues an executive order suspending the deportation of certain young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children.

September 6, 2012 - Accepts the Democratic nomination for president at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina.

November 6, 2012 - Wins re-election as president of the United States beating Republican challenger and former governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney.

December 19, 2012 - Is named Time Magazine's "Person of the Year" for the second time.

January 20, 2013 - Is sworn in for his second term, in a private ceremony in the Blue Room of the White House.