, the Gerontology Research Group (GRG) had validated the longevity claims of 59 German citizens who have become "

supercentenarian A supercentenarian (sometimes hyphenated as super-centenarian) is a person who has reached the age of 110 years. This age is achieved by about one in 1,000 centenarians. Supercentenarians typically live a life free of major age-related diseases u ...

s", attaining or surpassing 110 years of age. 49 of these were German residents and 10 were emigrants. There are currently six Germans known to be alive over age 110. The oldest of them is Maria Aulenbacher, born 7 November 1909 in Hesse-Nassau, aged and living in the United States. Augusta Holtz, an emigrant to the United States, remains the oldest German citizen whose age has been verified: she lived 115 years, 79 days, from 1871 to 1986.

100 oldest Germans

, align=center , F , 8 March 1906 , 23 June 2018 , 112 years, 107 days , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 22 , data-sort-value="Traenkner" , Elisabeth Tränkner , align=center , F , 11 August 1906 , 7 November 2018 , , Hesse-Nassau , Baden-Württemberg , - , 23 , data-sort-value="Berndt" , Meta Berndt , align=center , F , 9 November 1889 , 28 December 2001 , 112 years, 49 days , Pomerania , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 24 , data-sort-value="Hasse" , Asta Hasse , align=center , F , 25 November 1909 , 1 January 2022 , 112 years, 37 days , Pomerania , Berlin , - , 25 , data-sort-value="Klink" , Johanna Klink , align=center , F , 17 January 1903 , 20 February 2015 , 112 years, 34 days , Silesia , Saxony , - , 26 , data-sort-value="von Stephani" , Irmgard von Stephani , align=center , F , 20 September 1895 , 5 October 2007 , 112 years, 15 days , Hesse-Nassau , Berlin , - , 27 , data-sort-value="Bodenbender" , Katherine Bodenbender , align=center , F , 19 April 1905 , 16 April 2017 , 111 years, 362 days , Hesse-Nassau , United States , -style="background:#9f9;" , style="background:#f9f9f9;", 28 , data-sort-value="Brosig" , Erna Brosig , align=center , F , 15 January 1911 , Living , , Silesia , Lower Saxony , - , 29 , data-sort-value="Hagemeyer" , Katharina Hagemeyer , align=center , F , 4 August 1908 , 12 July 2020 , 111 years, 343 days , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 30 , data-sort-value="Rodenstein" , Adele Rodenstein , align=center , F , 3 September 1908 , 18 July 2020 , 111 years, 319 days , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 31 , data-sort-value="Kuepper" , Anna Küpper , align=center , F , 29 December 1908 , 18 October 2020 , 111 years, 294 days , Rhineland , Rhineland-Palatinate , - , 32 , data-sort-value="Zimmer" , Lina Zimmer , align=center , F , 20 November 1892 , 28 August 2004 , 111 years, 282 days , Württemberg , Baden-Württemberg , - , 33 , data-sort-value="Doernemann" , Hermann Dörnemann , align=center , M , 27 May 1893 , 2 March 2005 , 111 years, 279 days , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 34 , data-sort-value="Johnson" , Helen Johnson , align=center , F , 20 July 1896 , 17 April 2008 , 111 years, 272 days , Brandenburg , United States , - , 35 , data-sort-value="Klamroth" , Charlotte Klamroth , align=center , F , 18 August 1903 , 16 May 2015 , 111 years, 271 days , Prussian Saxony , Rhineland-Palatinate , - , 36 , data-sort-value="Regener" , Magdalene Regener , align=center , F , 5 March 1891 , 19 November 2002 , 111 years, 259 days , Hesse-Nassau , Lower Saxony , - , 37 , data-sort-value="Raissle" , Pauline Raißle , align=center , F , 16 December 1905 , 29 August 2017 , 111 years, 256 days , Württemberg , Baden-Württemberg , - , 38 , data-sort-value="Trompeter" , Catherine Trompeter , align=center , F , 26 March 1895 , 18 November 2006 , 111 years, 237 days , Alsace , France , - , 39 , data-sort-value="Heck" , Elisabeth Heck , align=center , F , 11 July 1893 , 3 February 2005 , 111 years, 207 days , Baden , Hesse , - , 40 , data-sort-value="Baumgaertner" , Paula Baumgärtner , align=center , F , 16 August 1881 , 24 February 1993 , 111 years, 192 days , Westphalia , Baden-Württemberg , - , 41 , data-sort-value="Ziegenhagel" , Adele Ziegenhagel , align=center , F , 12 July 1906 , 10 January 2018 , 111 years, 182 days , (unknown) , Rhineland-Palatinate , - , rowspan=2, 42 , data-sort-value="Ottmann" , Margarete Ottmann , align=center , F , 23 February 1903 , 17 August 2014 , rowspan=2, 111 years, 175 days , Silesia , Bavaria , - , data-sort-value="Beck" , Ilse Beck , align=center , F , 5 October 1906 , 29 March 2018 , Saxony , Thuringia , - , 44 , data-sort-value="Schneider, Elizabeth" , Elisabeth Schneider , align=center , F , 19 August 1901 , 9 February 2013 , 111 years, 174 days , Westphalia , Lower Saxony , - , 45 , data-sort-value="Borchert" , Frieda Borchert , align=center , F , 5 January 1897 , 22 June 2008 , 111 years, 169 days , Pomerania , Berlin , - , 46 , data-sort-value="Mehlberg" , Anna Mehlberg , align=center , F , 2 December 1906 , 16 May 2018 , 111 years, 165 days , Brandenburg , Berlin , - , 47 , data-sort-value="Rose" , Rosa Rose , align=center , F , 4 December 1903 , 25 April 2015 , 111 years, 142 days , Hanover , Lower Saxony , - , 48 , data-sort-value="Krueger" , Karolina Krüger , align=center , F , 17 February 1885 , 3 July 1996 , 111 years, 137 days , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 49 , data-sort-value="Braun" , Katharina Braun , align=center , F , 23 September 1867 , 5 February 1979 , 111 years, 135 days , Bavaria (

Palatinate Palatinate or county palatine may refer to: *the territory or jurisdiction of a count palatine United Kingdom and Ireland *County palatine in England and Ireland * Palatinate (award), student sporting award of Durham University *Palatinate (col ...

) , Rhineland-Palatinate , - , 50 , data-sort-value="Stephan" , Anna Stephan , align=center , F , 25 March 1892 , 3 August 2003 , 111 years, 131 days , Bohemia , Bavaria , - , 51 , data-sort-value="Braun" , Anna Braun , align=center , F , 5 July 1911 , 29 October 2022 , , (unknown) , Brandenburg , - , 52 , data-sort-value="Matthiesen" , Anne Matthiesen
(née Jensen) , align=center , F , 26 November 1884 , 19 March 1996 , , Schleswig-Holstein , Denmark , - , 53 , data-sort-value="Tauser" , Elsa Tauser , align=center , F , 10 July 1896 , 6 October 2007 , 111 years, 88 days , Hamburg , Schleswig-Holstein , - , 54 , data-sort-value="Lindemann" , Bertha Lindemann , align=center , F , 11 March 1891 , 29 May 2002 , 111 years, 79 days , Brunswick , Lower Saxony , - , 55 , data-sort-value="Frank" , Johanna Frank , align=center , F , 15 September 1875 , 24 November 1986 , 111 years, 70 days , Hamburg , United States , - , 56 , data-sort-value="Logemann" , Käthe 'Katie'
Logemann , align=center , F , 15 December 1907 , 19 February 2019 , , Oldenburg , United States , - , 57 , data-sort-value="Schlink" , Elisabeth Schlink , align=center , F , 3 December 1910 , 24 December 2021 , , West Prussia , Schleswig-Holstein , - , 58 , data-sort-value="Glato" , Feuke Glato , align=center , F , 26 December 1908 , nowrap , 31 December 2019 , , Hanover , Lower Saxony , - , 59 , data-sort-value="Assmann" , Else Aßmann , align=center , F , 18 February 1902 , 15 February 2013 , 110 years, 363 days , Brandenburg , Berlin , - , 60 , data-sort-value="Meier" , Agnes Meier , align=center , F , 30 May 1907 , 19 May 2018 , , (unknown) , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 61 , data-sort-value="Berner" , Carl Berner , align=center , M , 27 January 1902 , 7 January 2013 , 110 years, 346 days , Württemberg , United States , - , 62 , data-sort-value="Tilscher" , Aloysia Tilscher , align=center , F , 9 December 1893 , 8 November 2004 , 110 years, 335 days , Moravia , Bavaria , - , 63 , data-sort-value="Henke" , Hildegard Henke , align=center , F , 4 November 1905 , 27 September 2016 , , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 64 , data-sort-value="Schmidt" , Frieda Schmidt , align=center , F , 15 December 1899 , 6 November 2010 , 110 years, 326 days , Brandenburg , Brandenburg , - , 65 , data-sort-value="Zeisler" , Berta Zeisler , align=center , F , 2 February 1900 , 1 December 2010 , 110 years, 302 days , Lorraine , Rhineland-Palatinate , -style="background:#9f9;" , style="background:#f9f9f9;", 66 , data-sort-value="Schornack" , Johann Schornack , align=center , M , 29 February 1912 , Living , , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 67 , data-sort-value="Metreweli" , Gisela Metreweli , align=center , F , 10 October 1893 , 31 July 2004 , 110 years, 295 days , Bavaria , Bavaria , - , 68 , data-sort-value="Stutz" , Marie Stutz , align=center , F , 22 October 1896 , 11 August 2007 , 110 years, 293 days , Hesse , Bavaria , - , 69 , data-sort-value="Schneider, Gerhart" , Gerhart Schneider , align=center , M , 13 March 1908 , 18 December 2018 , 110 years, 280 days , Silesia , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 70 , data-sort-value="Henningsen" , Erna Henningsen , align=center , F , 24 May 1889 , 27 February 2000 , 110 years, 279 days , Prussian Saxony , Berlin , - , 71 , data-sort-value="Mueller" , Frieda Müller , align=center , F , 18 October 1894 , 21 July 2005 , 110 years, 276 days , Brandenburg , Brandenburg , - , 72 , data-sort-value="Spyra" , Pauline Spyra , align=center , F , 24 April 1886 , 11 January 1997 , 110 years, 262 days , Silesia , Bavaria , - , 73 , data-sort-value="Rau" , Felicitas Rau , align=center , F , 11 December 1907 , 8 August 2018 , 110 years, 240 days , Hamburg , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 74 , data-sort-value="Doerk" , Helga Doerk , align=center , F , 8 February 1908 , 2 October 2018 , 110 years, 237 days ,

Carinthia Carinthia (german: Kärnten ; sl, Koroška ) is the southernmost States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The main language is German language, German. Its regional dialects belong to t ...

, Austria , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 75 , data-sort-value="Tessmer" , Frieda Tessmer , align=center , F , 5 August 1897 , 28 March 2008 , 110 years, 236 days , Brandenburg , Berlin , - , 76 , data-sort-value="Rey" , Clothilde Rey , align=center , F , 20 November 1892 , 9 July 2003 , 110 years, 231 days , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 77 , data-sort-value="Scharfenberg" , Erna Scharfenberg , align=center , F , 26 June 1894 , 26 January 2005 , 110 years, 214 days , Hamburg , Schleswig-Holstein , - , 78 , data-sort-value="Beumer" , Wilhelmine Beumer , align=center , F , 10 April 1910 , 9 November 2020 , 110 years, 213 days , Hanover , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 79 , data-sort-value="Stoellger" , Mathilde Stoellger , align=center , F , 21 April 1893 , 16 November 2003 , 110 years, 209 days , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 80 , data-sort-value="Groeber" , Karolina Gröber , align=center , F , 27 April 1901 , 21 November 2011 , 110 years, 208 days , Bavaria , Bavaria , - , 81 , data-sort-value="Wedeking" , Friedrich Wedeking , align=center , M , 10 October 1862 , 5 May 1973 , 110 years, 207 days , Lippe , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 82 , data-sort-value="Corba" , Maria Corba , align=center , F , 15 August 1878 , 8 March 1989 , 110 years, 205 days , Banat , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 83 , data-sort-value="Bauch" , Charlotte Bauch , align=center , F , 12 October 1900 , 2 May 2011 , 110 years, 202 days , Saxony , Bavaria , - , 84 , data-sort-value="Wagner" , Arno Wagner , align=center , M , 4 June 1894 , 22 December 2004 , 110 years, 201 days , Saxony , Saxony , - , 85 , data-sort-value="Wesser" , Hilda Wesser , align=center , F , 14 August 1911 , 26 February 2022 , 110 years, 196 days , Prussian Saxony , Saxony-Anhalt , - , 86 , data-sort-value="Dott" , Caroline Dott , align=center , F , 5 February 1900 , 8 August 2010 , 110 years, 184 days , Alsace , France , - , 87 , data-sort-value="Freund" , Marie Freund , align=center , F , 25 September 1885 , 13 March 1996 , 110 years, 170 days , Brandenburg , Brandenburg , - , 88 , data-sort-value="Umrath" , Franziska Umrath , align=center , F , 5 September 1885 , 18 February 1996 , 110 years, 166 days , West Prussia , Hamburg , - , rowspan=2, 89 , data-sort-value="Volmer" , Maria Volmer , align=center , F , 8 June 1890 , 6 November 2000 , rowspan=2, 110 years, 151 days , Westphalia , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , data-sort-value="Rasmus" , Johanne Rasmus , align=center , F , 25 October 1896 , 25 March 2007 , Hanover , Lower Saxony , - , rowspan=2, 91 , data-sort-value="Heidbreder" , Helene Heidbreder , align=center , F , 19 May 1897 , 8 October 2007 , rowspan=2, 110 years, 142 days , Westphalia , Lower Saxony , - , data-sort-value="Jantke" , Maria Jantke , align=center , F , 18 October 1902 , 9 March 2013 , Westphalia , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 93 , data-sort-value="Joisten" , Emma Joisten , align=center , F , 21 June 1898 , 8 November 2008 , 110 years, 140 days , Hesse-Nassau , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 94 , data-sort-value="Wilks" , Johanne Wilks , align=center , F , 8 February 1893 , 23 June 2003 , 110 years, 135 days , Oldenburg , Lower Saxony , - , 95 , data-sort-value="Hessberg" , Else Hessberg , align=center , F , 5 December 1892 , 12 April 2003 , 110 years, 128 days , Hesse-Nassau , United States , - , rowspan=2, 96 , data-sort-value="Rentel" , Ella Ille Rentel , align=center , F , 19 May 1852 , 19 September 1962 , rowspan=2, 110 years, 123 days , Russia , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , data-sort-value="von Veh" , Lina von Veh , align=center , F , 17 February 1898 , 19 June 2008 , Russia , Bavaria , - , 98 , data-sort-value="Guglberger" , Theresia Guglberger , align=center , F , 26 August 1908 , 25 December 2018 , 110 years, 121 days , (unknown) , Bavaria , - , 99 , data-sort-value="Steinhauer" , Christine Steinhauer , align=center , F , 12 August 1908 , 1 December 2018 , , Rhineland , North Rhine-Westphalia , - , 100 , data-sort-value="Weyl" , Ruth Weyl , align=center , F , 6 November 1908 , 23 February 2019 , 110 years, 109 days , Silesia , United States

Biographies

Friedrich Wedeking

Karl Friedrich Wedeking (10 October 1862 – 5 May 1973) was born in

Blomberg Blomberg may refer to: People * Blomberg (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name). * Freiherr von Blomberg family Places * Blomberg, North Rhine-Westphalia, a town in the district of Lippe, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany * ...

, Prussia, German Confederation, and died in

Dortmund Dortmund (; Westphalian nds, Düörpm ; la, Tremonia) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the la ...

, aged 110 years, 207 days. He was one of the founding members of the city's gliders club in 1931. Wedeking was the first supercentenarian recognized as the world's

oldest living man This is a list of tables of the oldest people in the world in ordinal ranks. To avoid including false or unconfirmed claims of old age, names here are restricted to those people whose ages have been validated by an international body dealin ...

by '' Guinness World Records''.

Maria Laqua

Maria Laqua (12 February 1889 – 9 February 2002) was born in Rheydt-

Odenkirchen Odenkirchen is a former town in Germany, presently part of the city Mönchengladbach. It is situated on the river Niers, 21 miles by rail south-west of Düsseldorf. It has a railway station ( Rheydt-Odenkirchen), on the line from Mönchengladbac ...

, North Rhine-Westphalia, as one of 13 children. She worked as a housemaid, got married, and gave birth to two sons in the 1920s, who both died in the Second World War. Her husband Charles died in 1958. She lived for 35 years in a retirement home in Bad Hönningen, Rhineland-Palatinate and died in her sleep. She was only survived by a great-niece who attended her regularly. Laqua was in need of care, bedridden and inaccessible during her last years, although she occasionally had a flash and spoke. She was the oldest person ever in Germany when she died aged 112 years, 362 days. Her record age was surpassed by Gustav Gerneth on 13 October 2018, although his age is officially still unvalidated.

Hermann Dörnemann

Hermann Dörnemann (27 May 1893 – 2 March 2005) was, at the time of his death, the oldest living person in Germany and the oldest living man in Europe for about one year. After the death of 113-year-old American, Fred H. Hale Sr., in November 2004, Dörnemann was believed to have become the world's oldest living man, but Emiliano Mercado del Toro from Puerto Rico was later confirmed to be almost two years older. Dörnemann credited his longevity to "drinking a beer a day". He died of pneumonia in Düsseldorf, aged 111 years, 279 days.

Elisabeth Schneider

Elisabeth Schneider (19 August 1901 – 9 February 2013) was the oldest living person in Germany from November 2011 to her death in February 2013, aged 111 years and 174 days. She was born in Bad Oeynhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia, and had two sisters. She married in 1923 and gave birth to a daughter two years later. Schneider lived on her own until the age of 97. At her 111th birthday she was asked for the secret of her longevity and replied laughing that others just would have given up gasping for breath. She died in a retirement home in Varel, Lower Saxony. She was survived by her daughter, two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Gertrud Henze

Gertrud Henze (8 December 1901 – 22 April 2014) was the oldest living person in Germany from February 2013 until her death in April 2014. She was born in Rügen, worked as a librarian, and never married nor had children. Since 1993, she lived in a retirement home in Göttingen, where she was appreciated for her open and life-affirming attitude. She was still in good health, and listed reasons for her longevity including: reading a lot, having lively contact with other people, sometimes enjoying a cigarette and a glass of wine, and never getting married. She celebrated her 112th birthday only with some friends and relatives, because the public interest in her prior birthday had been too exhausting. She enjoyed reading, with the help of a magnifying glass. She was still able to walk with a

rollator A walker (North American English) or walking frame (British English) is a device that gives support to maintain balance or stability while walking, most commonly due to age-related mobility disability, including frailty. Another common equival ...

to meet acquaintances and friends for a chat. Henze died at the age of 112 years and 135 days. She donated her body to medical science for genetic research.

Frieda Szwillus

Frieda Szwillus (née Hennig; 30 March 1902 – 21 September 2014) was Germany's oldest living person from April 2014 until her death five months later, aged 112 years, 175 days. She was born Frieda Hennig in

Dessau Dessau is a town and former municipality in Germany at the confluence of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the '' Bundesland'' (Federal State) of Saxony-Anhalt. Since 1 July 2007, it has been part of the newly created municipality of Dessau-Roßlau ...

(now in Saxony-Anhalt), and had six siblings. Her family moved to Erla when she was 6. She was married twice, raised one biological child and three stepchildren, and outlived all of them. Until her later years, Szwillus lived at home in

Raschau Raschau is a former municipality in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2008, Raschau and Markersbach have formed the municipality Raschau-Markersbach.dementia. She had only been physically active during her youth. Her family attributed her longevity to a lively family life. She often visited her siblings, but never went on holiday. She also enjoyed knitting and embroidering. She died at the age of 112 years and 175 days.

Gustav Gerneth

Gustav Gerneth (15 October 1905 – 21 October 2019) was born in

Stettin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin language, Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Po ...

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

(now Szczecin, Poland). 15 October 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2017 He worked in a shipping company and at a gas plant. During the Second World War, he was a mechanic in the German air force ('' Luftwaffe''). He married Charlotte Grubert in 1930 and the couple had three sons; she died in 1988. Gerneth lived in Havelberg in Saxony-Anhalt for over forty years, and continued to do so on his own, with family members caring for his household. According to a statement by his granddaughter on his 113th birthday, he still had a lucid mind, watching football, solving crosswords, and doing mental arithmetic. Asked for the reason for his long life, he said: "I have always been living and eating well. No diet. Always butter, never margarine. I have not touched any cigarette all my life and I drank alcohol only at celebrations." Gerneth died on 21 October 2019 of natural causes, aged 114 years and 6 days, believed to have been the

world's oldest man This is a list of tables of the oldest people in the world in ordinal ranks. To avoid including false or unconfirmed claims of old age, names here are restricted to those people whose ages have been validated by an international body dealin ...

, although '' Guinness World Records'' has not verified his case.

Notes

References

{{Longevity German Supercentenarians