Oldest Man In Recorded History Dies

He was 116.

Japan’s Jiroemon Kimura, recognized by Guinness World Records as the oldest man in recorded history, has died…

Kimura died of natural causes in the hospital in his hometown of Kyotango, western Japan, at 2:08 a.m. today, the local government said in a faxed statement. Hospitalized for pneumonia on May 11, over the past few days his response, blood-sugar level and urine production had declined, according to the statement. A date for his funeral is yet to be set.

Born on April 19, 1897, when Queen Victoria still reigned over the British Empire, Kimura dodged childhood killers such as tuberculosis and pneumonia that kept life expectancy in Japan to 44 years around the time of his birth. He became the oldest man in recorded history on Dec. 28, 2012, at the age of 115 years and 253 days. The oldest woman in recorded history, France’s Jeanne Calment, died in 1997 at the age of 122.

In the accompanying photo, he is visited by Kyotango City Mayor Yasushi Nakayama when he celebrated his 116th birthday at his home on April 19, 2013 in Kyotango, Japan.

By: Cheston Catalano

Cheston Catalano is a Kentucky-based journalist whose work has been featured in the Chattanooga Times Free Press and the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle. He is a long-time contributor to Liberaland.