The Independent's journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn commission.
Meet Emma Morano the 116-year-old woman who may be the last living person born in the 1800s
'My word, I’m as old as the hills'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The oldest living person in the world, and the only one left who has touched three centuries, is a raw-egg-eating, brandy-drinking Italian woman who credits her long life to her daily eggs, her early bedtime and being single.
Emma Morano received the news Friday morning that Susannah Mushatt Jones, a New York woman several months her senior, had died Thursday evening, making Morano the world's oldest known person at 116.
Upon hearing of her new title, she said: "My word, I'm as old as the hills," a caregiver, Rosi Santoni, told the Telegraph.
The Italian supercentenarian was born in the Piedmont region of northern Italy on Nov 29, 1899. She lives now in a small lakeside town near the Switzerland border, still in her own one-bedroom home. Doctors make house calls, but for a 116-year-old, her health is good.
As a teenager, a doctor told her to eat raw eggs for her anemia, and so she has every day since, according to a New York Times profile in 2015. She also eats minced meat and pasta daily.
Leaving an unhappy marriage also helped her live so long, she told the Times. She separated from her husband in 1938 and never remarried. "I didn't want to be dominated by anyone," she said, though she did have many "suitors." She worked at a factory and then as a cook, and didn't retire until she was 75 -- 41 years ago.
Reporters went to her home in Verbania on Friday to talk to her about being the last living person with a birth date in the 19th century. But, according to the Associated Press, they had to wait because Morano was napping.
Her physician, Carlo Bava, said Morano's longevity is "a phenomenon."
Copyright Washington Post
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments