Emma Morano

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Emma Morano

Morano in 1943
Born
Emma Martina Luigia Morano

(1899-11-29)29 November 1899
Died(2017-04-15)15 April 2017
(aged 117 years, 137 days)
Verbania, Italy
Resting placeCimitero di Pallanza, Italy
Known for
  • Oldest living person (13 May 2016 – 15 April 2017)
  • Oldest verified Italian person ever
  • Last person living verified to have been born in the 1800s
Spouse
Giovanni Martinuzzi
(m. 1926; died 1978)
Children1

Emma Martina Luigia Morano OMRI[1] (29 November 1899 – 15 April 2017) was an Italian supercentenarian. She was the world's oldest living person from 13 May 2016 until her death on 15 April 2017, aged 117 years and 137 days. At the time of her death, she was also the last living person verified to have been born in the 1800s.[2] She is the oldest Italian person ever[3] and the third-oldest European person ever behind Jeanne Calment (1875–1997) and Lucile Randon (1904–2023).[4]

Early life[edit]

Morano as an infant in 1900

Emma Martina Luigia Morano was born on 29 November 1899 in Civiasco, Vercelli, Piedmont, to Giovanni Morano and Matilde Bresciani,[5][6] the eldest of eight children (five daughters and three sons). She had a long-lived family: her mother, an aunt and some of her siblings turned 90, and one of her sisters, Angela Morano (1908–2011),[7] died at age 102.[8]

When she was a child she moved from the Sesia Valley to Ossola for her father's job,[9] but the climate was so unhealthy there that a physician advised her family to live somewhere with more moderate weather, so she moved to Verbania, on Lake Maggiore, where she lived the rest of her life. In October 1926, she married Giovanni Martinuzzi[10] (1901–1978), and her only child was born in 1937 but died when he was only six months old. The marriage was not a happy one,[11] so in 1938, Morano separated from her husband, driving him out of the house.[12]

Later life[edit]

Emma Morano, undated
Emma Morano, 1920s

Until 1954 Morano worked at Maioni Industry, a jute factory in her town. She subsequently worked in the kitchen of Collegio Santa Maria, a Marianist boarding school in Verbania, until her retirement at the age of 75.[6]

In December 2011 she was awarded the honour of Knight of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by President Giorgio Napolitano.[1]

In 2013, when asked about the secret of her longevity, she said that she ate three eggs a day, occasionally drank a glass of homemade grappa, and enjoyed a chocolate sometimes, but, above all, she thought positively about the future.[13] She was still living alone in her home on her 115th birthday.[14] In 2016 she credited her long life to her diet of raw eggs and cookies, and to staying single.[15][16]

Morano became the oldest living person in Italy and Europe after the death of Maria Redaelli on 2 April 2013.[10] On her 114th birthday, she gave a short live TV interview to a RAI show.[17] On her 116th birthday, Morano received congratulations from Pope Francis.[18]

She surpassed the age of Venere Pizzinato in August 2014 and Dina Manfredini (who died in the United States) in August 2015, to become the oldest Italian person ever.[3][19] On 13 May 2016,[a] upon the death of American woman Susannah Mushatt Jones, Morano became the world's oldest living person and also the last living person verified to have been born before 1900.[21] On 29 July 2016, she was presented with a certificate from Guinness World Records recognizing her as the oldest person alive.[22][23] Festivities celebrating her 117th birthday on 29 November 2016 were broadcast live in Italy.[24]

Death[edit]

Morano died at her home in Verbania, Italy, on 15 April 2017 at the age of 117.[25][26] At the time of her death, she was the fourth-oldest person in recorded history.[27][28][29][30] Upon Morano's death, Violet Brown became the world's oldest living person.[31][32]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Susannah Mushatt Jones died on 12 May 2016 at 8:26 pm EDT.[20] However, in Italy, where Morano lived, the date was already 13 May 2016 (CEST).

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Le onorificenze della Repubblica italiana" (in Italian). Quirinale.it. Archived from the original on 28 September 2013. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  2. ^ "Emma Morano, world's oldest living person and last link to 19th Century, celebrates her 117th birthday". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  3. ^ a b "Emma Morano, è italiana la nonnina del mondo". DiRegiovani (in Italian). 16 May 2016.
  4. ^ "Longevity tips from the world's oldest person". The New Daily. 17 May 2016. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
  5. ^ "Oldest Validated Living Supercentenarians". Gerontology Research Group. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  6. ^ a b "I miei 112 anni di storia d'Italia". La Stampa (in Italian). 29 November 2011.
  7. ^ "'Angiolina', Sono 102!" (in Italian). Verbaniamilleventi.org. 27 March 2007. Archived from the original on 6 November 2013. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  8. ^ "Auguri alla nonna d'Italia che ha visto 10 Papi" (in Italian). San Francesco. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  9. ^ "La nonna che abbraccia tre secoli" (in Italian). Caffe.ch. 12 November 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  10. ^ a b mario.giovanardi. "Emma MArano 113 anni Mangio tre uova al giorno, come mi disse il dottore quando ero ragazza" (in Italian). Vip.it. Archived from the original on 15 October 2013. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  11. ^ "Emma Morano, 112 anni: ha visto dieci Papi. Il segreto? Tre uova al dì" (in Italian). 45.9215067,8.5515597: Blitzquotidiano.it. 29 November 2011. Retrieved 5 May 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  12. ^ Diebel, Matthew (13 May 2016). "This woman is the only person left born in the 1800s". USA TODAY. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  13. ^ "Tre uova, grappa e un gianduiotto, la ricetta di Emma per vivere 117 anni".
  14. ^ "Emma Morano compie 115 anni". La Stampa (in Italian). Archived from the original on 3 December 2014. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  15. ^ Bender, Kelli. "Emma Morano, 115, Credits Her Long Life to Raw Eggs and Staying Single". Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  16. ^ Faith Karimi (16 April 2017). "Emma Morano, world's oldest person, dies at age 117". CNN. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  17. ^ "Emma Morano compie 114 anni" (in Italian). ogginotizie.it. 29 November 2013. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
  18. ^ "I 116 anni di Emma Morano". Eco Risveglio (in Italian). 29 November 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  19. ^ "Nonna Emma compie 115 anni" (in Italian). 29 November 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  20. ^ Boyette, Chris; Melendez, Pilar (14 May 2016). "Susannah Mushatt Jones, world's oldest person, dies at 116". cnn.com. CNN. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  21. ^ "This woman is the only person left born in the 1800s". USA Today. 13 May 2016.
  22. ^ Ronchi, Sergio (2 August 2016). "Emma Morano Sul Libro Del Guinness World Records" (in Italian). verbaniamilleventi.org. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
  23. ^ Ronchi, Sergio (2 August 2016). "Guinness e marianisti premiano Emma Morano". La Stampa (in Italian). Retrieved 3 August 2016.
  24. ^ Povoledo, Elisabetta (29 November 2016). "Emma Morano, World's Oldest Person, Turns 117". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  25. ^ "Italy's Emma Morano, the world's oldest person, dies at 117". ABC News. 15 April 2017. Archived from the original on 16 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  26. ^ D'Emilio, Frances (15 April 2017). "Emma Morano, the world's oldest person, dies in Italy at 117". The Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  27. ^ "La biografia per la valsesiana più vecchia del mondo" (in Italian). La Sesia. 3 January 2017. Archived from the original on 13 January 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  28. ^ Fernando, Spencer (15 April 2017). "World's Oldest Person Dead At Age 117". MyToba.ca News. Archived from the original on 16 April 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  29. ^ Ronchi, Sergio (15 April 2017). "Verbania, morta a 117 anni Emma Morano: era la più anziana del mondo". La Stampa (in Italian). Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  30. ^ "World's oldest person Emma Morano dies at 117". BBC News. 15 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  31. ^ D'Emilio, Frances (15 April 2017). "Italy's Emma Morano, the world's oldest person, dies at 117". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  32. ^ "Italy's Emma Morano, the world's oldest person, dies at 117". STAT News. 15 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017 – via Associated Press.

External links[edit]

Media related to Emma Morano at Wikimedia Commons