The Oldest Man In Recorded History Has Passed Away
This article is more than 2 years old
The oldest man alive passed away last week, on June 12, at the age of 116 years and 54 days old. Japan’s Jiroemon Kimura was the Guinness World Records holder for the oldest man ever to have lived in recorded history. He died peacefully of natural causes in a hospital in Kyotango, Japan, after being admitted for pneumonia on May 11. For several days prior to his death he had become less responsive and his blood-sugar levels and urine production had decreased, until his finally passed away at 2:08 a.m. on the 12th.
Kimura was born April 19, 1897, in the fishing village of Kamiukawa (now part of Kyōtango), Japan. He was the third of six children born to farmers Morizo and Fusa Miyake. Kimura was one of a small handful of people who could say that they lived through three different centuries. After his death, that number has dropped to nine people.
At 116 years and 54 days on the planet, Jiroemon Kimura was the oldest male in recorded history, and the ninth oldest person. Kimura leaves behind five children, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren, and 13 great-great-grandchildren. He worked as a postman until he retired at 65. He later worked as a farmer until he turned 90 years old. [Hang on, let’s repeat that: He worked as a farmer until he was 90 freaking years old. I’m pretty sure the only reason he’s dead now is because the Grim Reaper managed to sneak some poison into his morning coffee, which Kimura probably made by squeezing coffee grounds in his bare hands until they began to cry and that provided the liquid. – Ed.]
The second oldest male in modern recorded history was Christian Mortensen, originally from Denmark, who later lived in California. Mortensen was 115 years and 252 days old when he died in 1998. The oldest person in history is Jeanne Calment of France, who lived until she was an extraordinary 122 years and 164 days old.
The world’s oldest living person is now Misao Okawa, also from Japan, who is currently 115 years and 104 days old. GFR wishes her good health so she can steal the trophy from Calment.
