The Oldest Men to Ever Live

Many people dream of reaching a ripe old age while maintaining their health, so as to enjoy the world around them without limitation. Superlatives such as oldest and longest are celebrated and recorded. Guinness World Records complies such statistics, honoring the achievements of those who rise above the ordinary, including the world’s oldest living human beings.

It is interesting to analyze how long human beings can live, analyzing their habits and lifestyles in an attempt to understand how they made it that far, and we might possibly mimmic their longevity, if we could just unlock the secret. Considering the risks people face daily, it is fascinating to see people living for over 100 years. 

The oldest man to have ever lived did so for 116 years and 54 days. Juan Vincente Mora (dob May 27,1909) is the oldest living man currently, as identified by Guinness World Records. He is 113 years old. 

Have you ever wonder who are some of the oldest men to have ever lived? Read on to discover more about the world’s oldest men!

Jiroemon Kimura

Kimura lived from April 19, 1897, to June 12, 2013, passing on at the age of 116, making him the only male to have lived to 116 years. He was also the last living man born before in the 19th century.

Kimura was born in Kamiukawa, Japan, a fishing village, as Kinjiro Miyake. His parents, Morizo and Fusa Miyake were farmers. Miyake married Yae Kimura, an adopted daughter to Jiroemon Kimura VIII and K. Kimura.

As his wife’s family lacked a male heir, Miyake adopted the name Jiroemon Kimura. Kimura and his wife were married for over 58 years and had two daughters and six sons. Yae Kimura died in 1979.

Jiroemon Kimura is believed to have fought in World War I. He was a soldier, farmer, and postal worker during his lifetime. He officially became Japan’s oldest living man on June 19, 2009, when Tomoji Tanabe, the man holding the title died.

Kimura also became the oldest living person on the planet on December 17, 2012, when Dina Manfredini died. Kimura held onto the title for over six months until his death on June 12, 2013. Jiroemon Kimura’s death was reportedly from natural causes.

Christian Mortensen

Born in Skarup, Denmark, on August 16, 1882, Christian Mortensen lived for 115 years and 252 days, passing away on April 25, 1998. He held the record of world’s oldest man posthumously until 2012 when Jiroemon Kimura from Japan attained the age of 115 years 253 days.

Mortensen was born to a tailor in Skarup village in Denmark. At 16, he became a tailor’s apprentice before becoming a farmhand.

Christian Mortensen married once in his lifetime, lasting ten years in the marriage before divorcing his spouse. He had no known children, and he never remarried. 

In 1903, Mortensen immigrated to the United States. While working as a tailor, he traveled throughout much of the United States, before settling in Chicago, where he had relatives. Before too long, however, Mortensen picked up stakes, moving to California, where he would remain until his death. He worked as a tailor, farmhand, milkman, and restaurateur during his life.

Emiliano Mercado del Toro

Emiliano Toro was born on August 21, 1891. He was 115 years and 156 days old at the time of his death on January 24, 2007.

Born in Puerto Rico, Emiliano held the title of the oldest man alive following Fred Hale’s death on November 19, 2004, until he himself passed away on January 24, 2007.

As of 2022, Toro ranks third on the list of men who have lived the longest. He was also verified as the oldest war veteran, having served in World War I as a private United States Army soldier.

Toro attributed his long life to funche, a codfish, boiled corn, and a cream-like dish that he ate daily.

Toro’s last two birthdays were major media events in Isabela, Puerto Rico, where Toro was a resident. Veterans and civic leaders commended him for his lucid mind and endurance.

Walter Breuning

Breuning was 114 years and 205 days old when he passed away on April 14, 2011. He was born on September 21, 1896, in the United States. In 2022, Breuning is still verified as the third oldest man in America and the fifth oldest in the world. 

Walter Breuning was one of five children from the marriage of Cora and John Breuning. The family moved from Melrose, Minnesota, his place of birth, to De Smet, South Dakota, the town made famous by Laura Ingles Wilder in her Little House series of books. The Ingles moved to De Smet a few years before the Breunings, however.

Breuning’s parents separated in 1910, forcing him to stop going to school and start scraping pans at a bakery for weekly wages of $2.50. He started working at the Great Northern Railway in 1913, a job he held for over fifty years.

Breuning talked about keeping the body active and the mind busy when asked about his secret to long life. His first wife, Agnes, died in 1957. He also outlived his second wife,Margaret, who died in 1975.

Yukichi Chuganji

Yukichi Chuganji was born on March 23, 1889, and he died on September 28, 2003. 

After graduating from technical school, Chuganji worked as a community welfare officer, a bank employee, an agricultural instructor, and a silkworm breeder.

At the time of his death, Chuganji had four sons and a daughter, seven grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren.

in 2003, at 114 years and 189 days old Chuganji was officially declared the oldest man alive in the world. His favorite means consisted of chicken, pork, and beef. Chungaji was know to dislike vegetables.

Chungaji also drank alcohol in moderation, substituting it with apple juice and milk occasionally. His last years were characterized by failing eyesight and body weakness, leaving him bedridden. The father of five children, he died of natural causes.

Gustav Gerneth

Gustav Gerneth’s life ended after 114 years and six days on October 21, 2019. Born on October 15, 1905, in Stettin, Germany, present-day Szczecin, Poland, he worked in a gas plant and at a shipping company before being recruited to the German air force as a Mechanic in World War II.

Gerneth was a married to Charlotte Grubert, and they shared three sons. After 58 years together, Charlotte died in 1988. Gernerth’s granddaughter confirmed that he was still lucid and active even at 113 years old. During his final years, he enjoyed solving mental arithmetic and crossword puzzles, , watching football, and caring for his homestead.

Gerneth attributed his long life to healthy eating and proper living. 

Gerneth confirmed that he only drank alcohol at parties or celebrations, never smoked cigarettes, and always used butter instead of margarine. His death resulted from natural causes.

Yisrael Kristal

Yisrael Kristal’s birth name was Izrael Icek Krysztal. He was a Holocaust survivor, verified in 2014 as the oldest living and last surviving man from the era. He also went on record as the oldest living man on earth January 18, 2016, after the death of Japan’s Yasutaro Koide.

Kristal lived for 113 years and 330 days, He was born on September 15, 1903, to a highly religious Jewish family, a practice he observed throughout his life. Kristal was only ten when his mother died.

As a Torah scholar, Kristal’s father was keen on ensuring his son had a religious education. 

Before becoming a confectioner, Yisrael Kristal was a veteran of World War I and World War II. Kristal’s first wife and their two children perished in World War II. He remarried, with his second union producing two children. Kristal died on August 11, 2017.

Masazo Nonaka

Masazo Nonaka held the title of the planet’s oldest man alive for one year after the Guinness World Records verified him in January 2018. Before this title, he was Japan’s oldest man alive, having earned the position in October 2016.

Nonaka was born on July 25, 1905, living for 113 years and 179 days before dying on January 20, 2019. Nonaka had three sisters and two brothers, and three of the five children he had with his wife, Hatsuno, were still alive at the time of his death.

When asked about the secret to his long life, Nonaka gave credit to spending time in the hot springs and eating sweets. He used a wheelchair in his old age before dying of natural causes.

Juan Vincente Mora

As of February 4, 2022, the world acknowledges Juan Vincente Mora as the oldest living man. He celebrated his 113th birthday on May 27, 2022, having been born in 1909. 

Juan was born to Edelmira and Eutiquio Mora in El Cobre, Tàchira, Venezuela. He was the ninth child in a family of ten children. The family relocated to Los Paujuiles, San José de Bolivar when Juan was five years old in 1914.

As a young boy, Juan Mora helped his father with farmwork, harvesting coffee, and nurturing sugarcane. He helped Miguel, his brother, create a wooden mill that made it easier to produce sugar cane and coffee before buying a bigger machine for higher productivity.

Mora was the Sheriff of Caricuena from 1948 to 1958. He helped families and other people resolve their disputes, especially in land matters. His wife died in 1997, leaving behind 11 children. 

Juan is a staunch Catholic who attributes his long life to the love of God, early bedtime, hard work, and enough rest. 

The world’s oldest man ever recorded lived for 116 years and 54 days. Two men managed to reach 115 years, while several others lived up to 114 years. 

Juan Vincente Mora, the world’s oldest living man as of 2022, is currently 113 years and over 150 days old. Yet, he continues to thrive in the presence of his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and the entire world.

The world’s oldest living men are regarded as hard workers who maintained a commendable diet and moderate routines. Guinness World Records verifies a new “oldest living man” each time the last record holder dies. Strict criteria and documentation are required before one attains the record.

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