, the Gerontology Research Group (GRG) had validated the longevity claims of 59 German citizens who have become "supercentenarians", attaining or surpassing 110 years of age. 49 of these were German residents and 10 were emigrants. There are currently at least two Germans known to be alive over age 110. The oldest of them is Charlotte Kretschmann, born on 3 December 1909, aged . Augusta Holtz, an emigrant to the United States, remains the oldest German citizen whose age has been verified: she lived 115 years, 79 days, from 1871 to 1986.[1]
Rank | Name | Sex | data-sort-type="date" | Birth date | data-sort-type="date" | Death date | Age | Birthplace | Place of death or residence | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | data-sort-value="Holtz" | Augusta Holtz | align=center | F | 3 August 1871 | 21 October 1986 | Posen | United States | ||
2 | data-sort-value="Kretschmann" | Charlotte Kretschmann | align=center | F | 3 December 1909 | Living | Silesia | Baden-Württemberg | ||
3 | data-sort-value="Benkner" | Charlotte Benkner | align=center | F | 16 November 1889 | 14 May 2004 | 114 years, 180 days | Saxony | United States | |
4 | data-sort-value="Gerneth" | Gustav Gerneth[2] | align=center | M | 15 October 1905 | 21 October 2019[3] | 114 years, 6 days | Pomerania | Saxony-Anhalt | |
5 | data-sort-value="Ollmann" | Josefine Ollmann | align=center | F | 11 November 1908 | 16 July 2022[4] | 113 years, 247 days | Bavaria | Schleswig-Holstein | |
6 | data-sort-value="Mohrs" | Luzia Mohrs | align=center | F | 23 March 1904 | 16 October 2017 | 113 years, 207 days | Rhineland | Brazil | |
7 | data-sort-value="Schaaf" | Louise Schaaf | align=center | F | 16 October 1906 | 25 April 2020 | 113 years, 192 days | Baden | United States | |
8 | data-sort-value="Brosig" | Erna Brosig | align=center | F | 15 January 1911 | 23 July 2024[5] | 113 years, 190 days | Silesia | Lower Saxony | |
9 | data-sort-value="Aulenbacher" | Maria Aulenbacher | align=center | F | 7 November 1909 | 8 February 2023[6] | Hesse-Nassau | United States | ||
10 | data-sort-value="Kirschbaum" | Adelheid Kirschbaum | align=center | F | nowrap | 29 September 1883 | 21 December 1996 | 113 years, 83 days | Rhineland | United States |
11 | data-sort-value="Mange" | Mathilde Mange[7] [8] [9] | align=center | F | 10 August 1906 | 28 October 2019 | 113 years, 79 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
12 | data-sort-value="Cernohorsky" | Anna Cernohorsky[10] [11] | align=center | F | 13 September 1909 | 18 September 2022[12] | 113 years, 5 days | Bohemia | Saxony | |
13 | data-sort-value="Laqua" | Maria Laqua | F | 12 February 1889 | 9 February 2002 | 112 years, 362 days | Rhineland | Rhineland-Palatinate | ||
14 | data-sort-value="Rein" | Rosa Rein | align=center | F | 24 March 1897 | 14 February 2010 | 112 years, 327 days | Silesia | Switzerland | |
15 | data-sort-value="Bechler" | Anna Bechler | align=center | F | 28 September 1907 | 29 July 2020 | 112 years, 305 days | Bavaria | United States | |
16 | data-sort-value="Gorecka" | Gertruda Gorecka[13] | F | 12 November 1911 | 25 June 2024[14] | 112 years, 226 days | West Prussia | Canada | ||
17 | data-sort-value="Smuda" | Lydia Smuda[15] | align=center | F | 6 November 1906 | 6 June 2019[16] | Rhineland | Hamburg | ||
18 | data-sort-value="Szwillus" | Frieda Szwillus | align=center | F | 30 March 1902 | nowrap | 21 September 2014 | 112 years, 175 days | Anhalt | Saxony |
19 | data-sort-value="Petit" | Marguerite Petit | align=center | F | 5 July 1883 | 21 December 1995 | 112 years, 171 days | Lorraine | France | |
20 | data-sort-value="Endres" | Babette Endres[17] | align=center | F | 1 August 1910 | 12 January 2023[18] | Bavaria | Baden-Württemberg | ||
21 | data-sort-value="Rosenberg" | Berta Rosenberg | align=center | F | 5 September 1896 | 28 January 2009 | 112 years, 145 days | Hesse-Nassau | United States | |
22 | data-sort-value="Henze" | Gertrud Henze | align=center | F | 8 December 1901 | 22 April 2014 | 112 years, 135 days | Pomerania | Lower Saxony | |
23 | data-sort-value="Huber" | [19] | align=center | F | 7 December 1905 | 9 April 2018 | 112 years, 123 days | Reuss-Gera | Baden-Württemberg | |
24 | data-sort-value="Fenners" | Therese Fenners[20] | align=center | F | 8 March 1906 | 23 June 2018 | 112 years, 107 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
25 | data-sort-value="Traenkner" | Elisabeth Tränkner[21] | align=center | F | 11 August 1906 | 7 November 2018[22] | Hesse-Nassau | Baden-Württemberg | ||
26 | data-sort-value="Berndt" | Meta Berndt | align=center | F | 9 November 1889 | 28 December 2001 | 112 years, 49 days | Pomerania | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
27 | data-sort-value="Klink" | Johanna Klink | align=center | F | 17 January 1903 | 20 February 2015 | 112 years, 34 days | Silesia | Saxony | |
28 | data-sort-value="von Stephani" | Irmgard von Stephani | align=center | F | 20 September 1895 | 5 October 2007 | 112 years, 15 days | Hesse-Nassau | Berlin | |
29 | data-sort-value="Rau_H" | Hildegard 'Hilda' Rau[23] | align=center | F | 31 July 1912 | 29 July 2024[24] | 111 years, 364 days | Württemberg | Baden-Württemberg | |
30 | data-sort-value="Bodenbender" | Katherine Bodenbender | align=center | F | 19 April 1905 | 16 April 2017 | 111 years, 362 days | Hesse-Nassau | United States | |
31 | data-sort-value="Hagemeyer" | Katharina Hagemeyer[25] | align=center | F | 4 August 1908 | 12 July 2020[26] | 111 years, 343 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
32 | data-sort-value="Rodenstein" | Adele Rodenstein[27] | align=center | F | 3 September 1908 | 18 July 2020 | 111 years, 319 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
33 | data-sort-value="Kuepper" | Anna Küpper[28] | align=center | F | 29 December 1908 | 18 October 2020 | 111 years, 294 days | Rhineland | Rhineland-Palatinate | |
34 | data-sort-value="Zimmer" | Lina Zimmer | align=center | F | 20 November 1892 | 28 August 2004 | 111 years, 282 days | Württemberg | Baden-Württemberg | |
35 | data-sort-value="Doernemann" | Hermann Dörnemann | align=center | M | 27 May 1893 | 2 March 2005 | 111 years, 279 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
36 | data-sort-value="Johnson" | Helen Johnson | align=center | F | 20 July 1896 | 17 April 2008 | 111 years, 272 days | Brandenburg | United States | |
37 | data-sort-value="Klamroth" | Charlotte Klamroth | align=center | F | 18 August 1903 | 16 May 2015 | 111 years, 271 days | Prussian Saxony | Rhineland-Palatinate | |
38 | data-sort-value="Regener" | Magdalene Regener | align=center | F | 5 March 1891 | 19 November 2002 | 111 years, 259 days | Hesse-Nassau | Lower Saxony | |
39 | data-sort-value="Raissle" | Pauline Raißle[29] [30] | align=center | F | 16 December 1905 | 29 August 2017 | 111 years, 256 days | Württemberg | Baden-Württemberg | |
40 | data-sort-value="Trompeter" | Catherine Trompeter | align=center | F | 26 March 1895 | 18 November 2006 | 111 years, 237 days | Alsace | France | |
41 | data-sort-value="Heck" | Elisabeth Heck | align=center | F | 11 July 1893 | 3 February 2005 | 111 years, 207 days | Baden | Hesse | |
42 | data-sort-value="Baumgaertner" | Paula Baumgärtner | align=center | F | 16 August 1881 | 24 February 1993 | 111 years, 192 days | Westphalia | Baden-Württemberg | |
43 | data-sort-value="Ziegenhagel" | Adele Ziegenhagel[31] | align=center | F | 12 July 1906 | 10 January 2018 | 111 years, 182 days | (unknown) | Rhineland-Palatinate | |
44 | data-sort-value="Ottmann" | Margarete Ottmann | align=center | F | 23 February 1903 | 17 August 2014 | 111 years, 175 days | Silesia | Bavaria | |
data-sort-value="Beck" | Ilse Beck[32] | align=center | F | 5 October 1906 | 29 March 2018 | Saxony | Thuringia | |||
46 | data-sort-value="Schneider, Elizabeth" | Elisabeth Schneider | align=center | F | 19 August 1901 | 9 February 2013 | 111 years, 174 days | Westphalia | Lower Saxony | |
47 | data-sort-value="Borchert" | Frieda Borchert | align=center | F | 5 January 1897 | 22 June 2008 | 111 years, 169 days | Pomerania | Berlin | |
48 | data-sort-value="Mehlberg" | Anna Mehlberg[33] | align=center | F | 2 December 1906 | 16 May 2018 | 111 years, 165 days | Brandenburg | Berlin | |
49 | data-sort-value="Rose" | Rosa Rose | align=center | F | 4 December 1903 | 25 April 2015 | 111 years, 142 days | Hanover | Lower Saxony | |
50 | data-sort-value="Krueger" | Karolina Krüger | align=center | F | 17 February 1885 | 3 July 1996 | 111 years, 137 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
51 | data-sort-value="Braun" | Katharina Braun | align=center | F | 23 September 1867 | 5 February 1979 | 111 years, 135 days | Bavaria (Palatinate) | Rhineland-Palatinate | |
52 | data-sort-value="Stephan" | Anna Stephan | align=center | F | 25 March 1892 | 3 August 2003 | 111 years, 131 days | Bohemia | Bavaria | |
53 | data-sort-value="Reichenstein" | Friedrich Reichenstein[34] | align=center | M | 1 February 1906 | 9 June 2017 | 111 years, 128 days | Westphalia | Israel | |
54 | data-sort-value="Braun" | Anna Braun[35] | align=center | F | 5 July 1911 | 29 October 2022[36] | (unknown) | Brandenburg | ||
55 | data-sort-value="Teichgräber" | Gertrud Teichgräber[37] | align=center | F | 22 November 1908 | 16 March 2020 | Brandenburg (Berlin) | Lower Saxony | ||
56 | data-sort-value="Matthiesen" | align=center | F | 26 November 1884 | 19 March 1996 | Schleswig-Holstein | Denmark | |||
57 | data-sort-value="Blohm" | Gertrud Blohm[38] | align=center | F | 7 September 1912 | 29 December 2023[39] | Mecklenburg-Schwerin | Mecklenburg-Vorpommern | ||
58 | data-sort-value="Tauser" | Elsa Tauser | align=center | F | 10 July 1896 | 6 October 2007 | 111 years, 88 days | Hamburg | Schleswig-Holstein | |
59 | data-sort-value="Lindemann" | Bertha Lindemann | align=center | F | 11 March 1891 | 29 May 2002 | 111 years, 79 days | Brunswick | Lower Saxony | |
60 | data-sort-value="Lerchenthal" | Maria Gabriella Lerchenthal[40] | align=center | F | 8 June 1913 | Living | Bavaria | Italy | ||
61 | data-sort-value="Frank" | Johanna Frank | align=center | F | 15 September 1875 | 24 November 1986 | 111 years, 70 days | Hamburg | United States | |
62 | data-sort-value="Logemann" | [41] [42] | align=center | F | 15 December 1907 | 19 February 2019 | Oldenburg | United States | ||
63 | data-sort-value="Kreckmann" | Emilie Kreckmann[43] | align=center | F | 28 October 1912 | 18 December 2023[44] | Bavaria | Saarland | ||
64 | data-sort-value="Schlink" | Elisabeth Schlink[45] | align=center | F | 3 December 1910 | 24 December 2021[46] | West Prussia | Schleswig-Holstein | ||
65 | data-sort-value="Glato" | Feuke Glato[47] | align=center | F | 26 December 1908 | nowrap | 31 December 2019[48] | Hanover | Lower Saxony | |
66 | data-sort-value="Assmann" | Else Aßmann | align=center | F | 18 February 1902 | 15 February 2013 | 110 years, 363 days | Brandenburg | Berlin | |
67 | data-sort-value="Duisberg" | Dorothea Duisberg[49] | align=center | F | 7 October 1912 | 2 October 2023[50] | Bremen | Chile | ||
68 | data-sort-value="Schornack" | Johann Schornack[51] | align=center | M | 29 February 1912 | 22 February 2023[52] | 110 years, 359 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
69 | data-sort-value="Matschewsky" | Anna 'Änne' Matschewsky[53] | align=center | F | 3 October 1912 | nowrap | 23 September 2023[54] | Rhineland | Baden-Württemberg | |
70 | data-sort-value="Meier" | Agnes Meier[55] | align=center | F | 30 May 1907 | 19 May 2018 | (unknown) | North Rhine-Westphalia | ||
71 | data-sort-value="Berner" | Carl Berner | align=center | M | 27 January 1902 | 7 January 2013 | 110 years, 346 days | Württemberg | United States | |
72 | data-sort-value="Tilscher" | Aloysia Tilscher | align=center | F | 9 December 1893 | 8 November 2004 | 110 years, 335 days | Moravia | Bavaria | |
73 | data-sort-value="Henke" | Hildegard Henke[56] [57] | align=center | F | 4 November 1905 | 27 September 2016 | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | ||
74 | data-sort-value="Schmidt" | Frieda Schmidt | align=center | F | 15 December 1899 | 6 November 2010 | 110 years, 326 days | Brandenburg | Brandenburg | |
75 | data-sort-value="Zeisler" | Berta Zeisler | align=center | F | 2 February 1900 | 1 December 2010 | 110 years, 302 days | Lorraine | Rhineland-Palatinate | |
76 | data-sort-value="Metreweli" | Gisela Metreweli | align=center | F | 10 October 1893 | 31 July 2004 | 110 years, 295 days | Bavaria | Bavaria | |
77 | data-sort-value="Stutz" | Marie Stutz | align=center | F | 22 October 1896 | 11 August 2007 | 110 years, 293 days | Hesse | Bavaria | |
78 | data-sort-value="Schneider, Gerhart" | Gerhart Schneider[58] | align=center | M | 13 March 1908 | 18 December 2018 | 110 years, 280 days | Silesia | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
79 | data-sort-value="Henningsen" | Erna Henningsen | align=center | F | 24 May 1889 | 27 February 2000 | 110 years, 279 days | Prussian Saxony | Berlin | |
80 | data-sort-value="Mueller" | Frieda Müller | align=center | F | 18 October 1894 | 21 July 2005 | 110 years, 276 days | Brandenburg | Brandenburg | |
81 | data-sort-value="Spyra" | Pauline Spyra | align=center | F | 24 April 1886 | 11 January 1997 | 110 years, 262 days | Silesia | Bavaria | |
82 | data-sort-value="Rau_F" | Felicitas Rau[59] | align=center | F | 11 December 1907 | 8 August 2018 | 110 years, 240 days | Hamburg | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
83 | data-sort-value="Doerk" | Helga Doerk[60] | align=center | F | 8 February 1908 | 2 October 2018 | 110 years, 237 days | Carinthia, Austria | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
84 | data-sort-value="Tessmer" | Frieda Tessmer | align=center | F | 5 August 1897 | 28 March 2008 | 110 years, 236 days | Brandenburg | Berlin | |
85 | data-sort-value="Rey" | Clothilde Rey | align=center | F | 20 November 1892 | 9 July 2003 | 110 years, 231 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
86 | data-sort-value="Scharfenberg" | Erna Scharfenberg | align=center | F | 26 June 1894 | 26 January 2005 | 110 years, 214 days | Hamburg | Schleswig-Holstein | |
87 | data-sort-value="Beumer" | Wilhelmine Beumer[61] | align=center | F | 10 April 1910 | 9 November 2020[62] | 110 years, 213 days | Hanover | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
88 | data-sort-value="Stoellger" | Mathilde Stoellger | align=center | F | 21 April 1893 | 16 November 2003 | 110 years, 209 days | Rhineland | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
89 | data-sort-value="Groeber" | Karolina Gröber | align=center | F | 27 April 1901 | 21 November 2011 | 110 years, 208 days | Bavaria | Bavaria | |
90 | data-sort-value="Wedeking" | Friedrich Wedeking | align=center | M | 10 October 1862 | 5 May 1973 | 110 years, 207 days | Lippe | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
91 | data-sort-value="Corba" | Maria Corba | align=center | F | 15 August 1878 | 8 March 1989 | 110 years, 205 days | Banat | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
92 | data-sort-value="Bauch" | Charlotte Bauch | align=center | F | 12 October 1900 | 2 May 2011 | 110 years, 202 days | Saxony | Bavaria | |
93 | data-sort-value="Wagner" | Arno Wagner | align=center | M | 4 June 1894 | 22 December 2004 | 110 years, 201 days | Saxony | Saxony | |
94 | data-sort-value="Wesser" | Hilda Wesser[63] | align=center | F | 14 August 1911 | 26 February 2022 | 110 years, 196 days | Prussian Saxony | Saxony-Anhalt | |
95 | data-sort-value="Dott" | Caroline Dott | align=center | F | 5 February 1900 | 8 August 2010 | 110 years, 184 days | Alsace | France | |
96 | data-sort-value="Peitz" | Maria Peitz[64] | align=center | F | 25 February 1913 | 22 August 2023[65] | 110 years, 178 days | Westphalia | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
97 | data-sort-value="Freund" | Marie Freund[66] | align=center | F | 25 September 1885 | 13 March 1996[67] | 110 years, 170 days | Brandenburg | Brandenburg | |
98 | data-sort-value="Umrath" | Franziska Umrath | align=center | F | 5 September 1885 | 18 February 1996 | 110 years, 166 days | West Prussia | Hamburg | |
99 | data-sort-value="Volmer" | Maria Volmer | align=center | F | 8 June 1890 | 6 November 2000 | 110 years, 151 days | Westphalia | North Rhine-Westphalia | |
data-sort-value="Rasmus" | Johanne Rasmus | align=center | F | 25 October 1896 | 25 March 2007 | Hanover | Lower Saxony | |||
101 | data-sort-value="Heidbreder" | Helene Heidbreder | align=center | F | 19 May 1897 | 8 October 2007 | 110 years, 142 days | Westphalia | Lower Saxony | |
data-sort-value="Jantke" | Maria Jantke | align=center | F | 18 October 1902 | 9 March 2013 | Westphalia | North Rhine-Westphalia--> |
Karl Friedrich Wedeking (10 October 1862 – 5 May 1973) was born in Blomberg, Prussia, German Confederation, and died in Dortmund, West Germany, aged 110 years, 207 days. He was one of the founding members of the city's gliders club in 1931.[68] Wedeking was the first supercentenarian recognized as the world's oldest living man by Guinness World Records.
Maria Laqua (12 February 1889 – 9 February 2002) was born in Rheydt-Odenkirchen, Rhineland, today in North Rhine-Westphalia, as one of 13 children. She worked as a housemaid, got married, and gave birth to two sons in the 1920s, who both died in the Second World War. Her husband Charles died in 1958. She lived for 35 years in a retirement home in Bad Hönningen, Rhineland-Palatinate and died in her sleep. She was only survived by a great-niece who attended her regularly. Laqua was in need of care, bedridden and inaccessible during her last years, although she occasionally had a flash and spoke.[69] She was the oldest person ever in Germany when she died aged 112 years, 362 days. Her record age was officially surpassed by Josefine Ollmann on 9 November 2021, who was validated by the GRG on 15 February 2023.
Hermann Dörnemann (27 May 1893 – 2 March 2005) was, at the time of his death, the oldest living person in Germany and the oldest living man in Europe for about one year. After the death of 113-year-old American Fred Harold Hale in November 2004, Dörnemann was believed to have become the world's oldest living man,[70] but Emiliano Mercado del Toro from Puerto Rico was later confirmed to be almost two years older. Dörnemann credited his longevity to "drinking a beer a day".[71] [72] He died of pneumonia in Düsseldorf, aged 111 years, 279 days.
Elisabeth Schneider (19 August 1901 – 9 February 2013) was the oldest living person in Germany from November 2011 to her death in February 2013, aged 111 years and 174 days. She was born in Bad Oeynhausen, today in North Rhine-Westphalia, and had two sisters. She married in 1923 and gave birth to a daughter two years later. Schneider lived on her own until the age of 97. At her 111th birthday she was asked for the secret of her longevity and replied laughing that others just would have given up gasping for breath. She died in a retirement home in Varel, Lower Saxony. She was survived by her daughter, two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.[73] [74]
Gertrud Henze (8 December 1901 – 22 April 2014) was the oldest living person in Germany from February 2013 until her death in April 2014. She was born in Rügen, worked as a librarian, and never married nor had children. Since 1993, she lived in a retirement home in Göttingen, where she was appreciated for her open and life-affirming attitude. She was still in good health, and listed reasons for her longevity including: reading a lot, having lively contact with other people, sometimes enjoying a cigarette and a glass of wine, and never getting married. She celebrated her 112th birthday only with some friends and relatives, because the public interest in her prior birthday had been too exhausting. She enjoyed reading, with the help of a magnifying glass. She was still able to walk with a rollator to meet acquaintances and friends for a chat. Henze died at the age of 112 years and 135 days. She donated her body to medical science for genetic research.[75] [76] [77]
Frieda Szwillus (née Hennig; 30 March 1902 – 21 September 2014[78]) was Germany's oldest living person from April 2014 until her death five months later, aged 112 years, 175 days. She was born Frieda Hennig in Dessau (now in Saxony-Anhalt), and had six siblings. Her family moved to Erla when she was 6. She was married twice, raised one biological child and three stepchildren, and outlived all of them. Until her later years, Szwillus lived at home in Raschau with her family, and she needed no medicine. She was in good physical condition, but suffered from dementia. She had only been physically active during her youth. Her family attributed her longevity to a lively family life. She often visited her siblings, but never went on holiday. She also enjoyed knitting and embroidering. She died at the age of 112 years and 175 days.[79] [80] [81]
Gustav Gerneth (15 October 1905 - 21 October 2019)[3] was born in Stettin, German Empire (now Szczecin, Poland).[82] He worked in a shipping company and at a gas plant. During the Second World War, he was a mechanic in the German air force (Luftwaffe).[83] He married Charlotte Grubert in 1930 and the couple had three sons; she died in 1988. Gerneth lived in Havelberg in Saxony-Anhalt for over forty years, and continued to do so on his own, with family members caring for his household.[2] [84] According to a statement by his granddaughter on his 113th birthday, he still had a lucid mind, watching football, solving crosswords, and doing mental arithmetic.[85] Asked for the reason for his long life, he said: "I have always been living and eating well. No diet. Always butter, never margarine. I have not touched any cigarette all my life and I drank alcohol only at celebrations."[86] Gerneth died on 21 October 2019 of natural causes, aged 114 years and 6 days, believed to have been the world's oldest man,[87] although Guinness World Records has not verified his case.[88] [89]
In November 2021, Josefine Ollmann (11 November 1908 – 16 July 2022) surpassed Maria Laqua's final age to become the oldest person ever in Germany and the first German to officially reach the age of 113. Ollmann, whose age was validated by the GRG on 13 February 2023, passed away on 16 July 2022 at the final age of 113 years and 247 days. Although Gustav Gerneth's claimed final age is older than Ollmann, his age is officially still unvalidated.