Oldest People

The longest unambiguously documented lifespan is that of Jeanne Calment of France (1875–1997), who was aged 122 years. She met Vincent van Gogh when aged 14. This led to her being noticed by the media in 1988, at age 113. Subsequent investigation found that her life was documented in the records of her native city of Arles beyond reasonable question. More evidence for the Calment case has been produced than for any other supercentenarian case, which makes her case a gold standard among the oldest people recordholders. This is contrasted with the now-disputed claim of age 120 for the oldest man ever, Shigechiyo Izumi. While this case is currently still recognized by Guinness World Records, the Japanese authorities have hinted that his age was not certain. This claim was accepted in 1978, but subsequent additional research (as early as 1984) has raised doubt as to whether his birth date was confused with that of a brother who died at a young age.

Currently (since the death of Yone Minagawa on 13 August, 2007), the oldest living person is 114-year-old Edna Parker of the U.S., born on 20 April, 1893. Parker and Maria de Jesus are the only validated people born in 1893 who are still alive.

Oldest living people
The following is a list of the people who have held the title of oldest recognized person in the world since 1955 (the year Guinness Records began). This list does not reflect the original lists, but is instead retroactive – for example, the Betsy Baker case was not verified until the 2000s.

Oldest validated people currently living (top 10) Main article: List of living supercentenarians Please note that approximately 90% of all supercentenarians are women. This list currently reflects that.

1 Edna Parker 115 years old, Oldest person in the world (since August 13, 2007). Lives in Indiana, United States 2 Maria de Jesus 114 years old, Lives in Portugal 3 Gertrude Baines 114 years old, &0000000000000114.000000114 days F 6 April 1894 Lives in California, United States 4 Catherine Hagel 113 years old, Lives in Minnesota, United States 5 Beatrice Farve 113 years old, Lives in Georgia, United States 6 Mary Josephine Ray 113 Years old, Lives in New Hampshire, United States 7 Olivia Patricia Thomas 113 years old, Lives in New York, United States 8 Neva Morris 112 years old, Lives in Iowa, United States 9 Chiyo Shiraishi 112 years old, Lives in Kantō, Japan 10 Tomoji Tanabe 112 years old, Lives in Kyūshū, Japan
 * 1) Name Age as of 29 July 2008 Sex Born Residence

[edit] Oldest men currently living (top 10) Main article: List of living supercentenarians 29 July 2008 Born Residence 1 Tomoji Tanabe &0000000000000112.000000112 years, &0000000000000315.000000315 days 18 September 1895 Oldest man in the world (since 24 January 2007). Lives in Kyūshū, Japan 2 Henry Allingham &0000000000000112.000000112 years, &0000000000000053.00000053 days 6 June 1896 Lives in England, United Kingdom. World War I Veteran George Francis &0000000000000112.000000112 years, &0000000000000053.00000053 days 6 June 1896 Lives in California, United States 4 Walter Breuning &0000000000000111.000000111 years, &0000000000000312.000000312 days 21 September 1896 Lives in Montana, United States 5 Augusto Moreira de Oliveira &0000000000000111.000000111 years, &0000000000000297.000000297 days 6 October 1896 Lives in Portugal 6 Walter Seward &0000000000000111.000000111 years, &0000000000000290.000000290 days 13 October 1896 Lives in New Jersey, United States 7 Jiroemon Kimura &0000000000000111.000000111 years, &0000000000000101.000000101 days 19 April 1897 Lives in Kansai, Japan 8 Kiyoshi Igarashi &0000000000000110.000000110 years, &0000000000000362.000000362 days 2 August 1897 Lives in Hokkaidō, Japan 9 Aarne Arvonen &0000000000000110.000000110 years, &0000000000000360.000000360 days 4 August 1897 Lives in Finland. Finnish Civil War Veteran 10 Harry Patch &0000000000000110.000000110 years, &0000000000000042.00000042 days 17 June 1898 Lives in England, United Kingdom. World War I Veteran
 * 1) Name Age as of

Gerontology and the verification of age claims
Gerontology involves the tracking of the longest-lived proven individuals as the bio-markers of the human life span. The study of gerontology is usually credited to Michel Eugène Chevreul, a French chemist who died in 1889, aged 102. In the early years of the twenty first century gerontology is benefiting from the improvements in record-keeping in the industrialized world from the latter part of the nineteenth century. As a result, verification standards have evolved and multiple independent documentary confirmations of birth-date are now required to substantiate a claim, rather than evidence deriving only from the claimant. For claims that have not been satisfactorily confirmed by Guinness World Records, considered the authority, see longevity claims.

Current trends in the lifespans of the oldest humans
The population and lifespans of the world's oldest people are continually increasing due to improvements in health care and lifestyle during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and the increasing world population. Additionally, better record-keeping, both 100+ years ago and today, is increasing the percentage of the world's population whose age can be tracked and verified. This increase has been matched by efforts to harness this data. While in 1837 the oldest verified person was aged 108 years, it is now no longer unheard of for individuals, especially females, to have lived 110 years and more. The term supercentenarian has been coined to describe this emerging population group.