A Japanese woman who was officially recognized as the current dean of humanity died on April 19 at the age of 119, local authorities announced on Monday.
Kane Tanaka was born on January 2, 1903 in the department of Fukuoka (southwest of Japan): that year, the Wright brothers made the first powered flight and Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize.
She was relatively healthy until recently and lived in a nursing home in her home department, where she enjoyed board games, math problem solving, soda and chocolate.
When she was younger, Mrs. Tanaka had run several businesses, including a noodle shop and a rice cake shop. She had married in 1922, giving birth to four children and adopting a fifth.
She had planned to participate in the wheelchair torch relay for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, but had given up on it because of the pandemic.
When the Guinness Book of Records awarded him the title of the oldest living person in the world in 2019, he was asked what was the happiest moment in his life. His answer: “Now”.
His daily routine was described at the time as including a 6:00 a.m. wake-up call, and afternoons spent studying math and practicing calligraphy.
“One of her favorite pastimes is the game Othello, she has become an expert in this classic board game and often manages to beat the house staff”, wrote Guinness in 2019.
Japan has the oldest population in the world and about 86,500 of its inhabitants are centenarians, according to the latest estimate from the Ministry of Health in September 2021.
The oldest person who ever lived and whose date of birth was attested was the Frenchwoman Jeanne Calment, who died in 1997 at the age of 122.