A supercentenarian (sometimes hyphenated as super-centenarian) is someone who has lived to or passed their 110th birthday. This age is achieved by about one in 1,000
centenarians. Anderson ''et al.'' concluded that supercentenarians live a life typically free of major age-related diseases until shortly before
maximum human lifespan is reached (theoretically estimated to be 126 years).
European supercentenarians
European supercentenarians are residents or emigrants from
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
who have attained or surpassed 110 years of age. , the
Gerontology Research Group
The Gerontology Research Group (GRG) based in Los Angeles, California, USA, is a global social science organization of researchers in various fields of gerontology, primarily concerned with verifying and recording supercentenarians status (peop ...
(GRG) had validated the longevity claims of more than 600 European
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.
The oldest European ever, and the world's oldest person ever, was Frenchwoman
Jeanne Calment
Jeanne Louise Calment (; 21 February 1875 – 4 August 1997) was a French supercentenarian and the oldest human whose age is documented, with a lifespan of 122 years and 164 days. Her longevity attracted media attention and medical studies ...
, who lived to the age of 122 years and 164 days. This has been disputed by some researchers. The oldest European man ever was
Christian Mortensen from Denmark, who emigrated to the United States where he died at the age of 115 years and 252 days. The oldest non-emigrant European man was
Spaniard
Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both ind ...
Joan Riudavets Moll, who lived 114 years and 81 days.
Beyond the 50 oldest Europeans in aggregate, there are more detailed lists of the oldest
Belgian,
British,
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...
,
Dutch,
Finnish,
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
,
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
,
Irish,
Italian,
Norwegian,
Portuguese,
Spanish and
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
people.
Oldest European residents ever
Below is a list of the oldest 50 supercentenarians who have died or are living in Europe. The list including all known and validated supercentenarians who died before 2015 was compiled by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG).
Later cases were sourced either from more recent
(GRG) data,
from administrative reports or from press coverage, as indicated in the table.
Oldest European emigrants ever
Below is a list of the oldest five supercentenarians born in Europe who emigrated to another continent and either died or are still living there.
African supercentenarians
This is an incomplete list of people born in
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
who have lived at least 110 years. Most of the listed persons were born in former
colonies
In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
that already maintained systematic
birth record
A birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a person. The term "birth certificate" can refer to either the original document certifying the circumstances of the birth or to a certified copy of or representation of the ensuin ...
s in the 19th century. Many other supercentenarian cases likely exist in Africa, but are not adequately documented.
Asian supercentenarians
This is an incomplete list of
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 who were born or died in Asia, or are living there. According to the Gerontology Research Group, the verified oldest Asian person ever is
Kane Tanaka
was a Japanese supercentenarian who, until her death at the age of , was the world's oldest verified living person following the death of Chiyo Miyako on 22 July 2018. She is the oldest verified Japanese person and the second-oldest verified ...
of
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, who died on 19 April 2022, aged 119 years and 107 days.
The
verified oldest man is
Jiroemon Kimura
was a Japanese supercentenarian who lived for 116 years and 54 days. He became the verified oldest man in history on 28 December 2012, when he surpassed the age of Christian Mortensen (1882–1998), as well as, so far, the only man who has li ...
, also from Japan, who died on 12 June 2013, aged 116 years and 54 days. As of , the oldest living person in Asia is Fusa Tatsumi.
The vast majority of verified Asian cases of supercentenarians come from Japan, which has kept birth records for more than a century, while other Asian countries have historically been less meticulous about keeping such records. According to ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', China and India have many supercentenarians, but none are confirmed, as their governments did not track births prior to the early 1900s.
Japan
Notable supercentenarians from other Asian countries
Oldest known Asian emigrants
Supercentenarians in Oceania
Below is a list of supercentenarians who have died or are living in Oceania. The list including all known and validated supercentenarians who died before 2015 was compiled by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG).
Later cases were sourced either from more recent GRG data,
from administrative reports or from press coverage, as indicated in the table. All Australian supercentenarians born prior to 1 January 1901 were born in the British colonies of Australia.
North American supercentenarians
United States
Canada
Other North American countries and territories
South American supercentenarians
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Supercentenarians by continent
Supercentenarians
Lists of supercentenarians