Tomoji Tanabe

Tomoji Tanabe
Born	September 18, 1895(1895-09-18) Miyakonojo, Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan
Died	June 19, 2009(2009-06-19) (aged &10000000000000113000000113 years, &10000000000000274000000274 days) Miyakonojo, Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan
Occupation	Former civil engineer
Title	World's oldest man (24 January 2007 – 19 June 2009)

Tomoji Tanabe (田鍋 友時, Tanabe Tomoji, 18 September 1895 – 19 June 2009) was a Japanese supercentenarian and, at the time of his death at age 113, the oldest living man in the world. Tanabe became the oldest man in Japan following the death of Nijiro Tokuda, who was 111 at the time, on 12 June 2006. Upon the death of 115-year-old Emiliano Mercado del Toro on 24 January 2007, he assumed the title of the man with the oldest validated date of birth in the world. He was the last living man verified to have been born in 1895.

Tanabe was the seventh-oldest validated person in the world and the third-oldest in Japan. In spite of being the youngest "oldest living man" since 2000 at his title accession in January 2007, at the time of his death, Tanabe ranked 10th among the oldest men ever and was only one day removed from tying American supercentenarian, Johnson Parks (1884–1998), at 9th.

Biography

Born in Miyakonojo, Miyazaki Prefecture, Tanabe worked as a civil engineer at the city office. He is survived by eight children, 25 grandchildren and 54 great-grandchildren. He credited total abstinence from alcohol and smoking as the secret to his longevity. On his 112th birthday, he stated: "I want to live forever. I don't want to die", as he received 100,000 Japanese Yen and flowers from the local mayor. Tanabe (Guinness Book of World Records' oldest living male, June 2007) was "extremely healthy". He ate vegetables and drank milk daily.

A former city land surveyor, Tanabe, on his 113th birthday said "I am happy. I eat a lot. I don't want to die yet." In 2008, he said he wanted to "live indefinitely." Tanabe received a giant tea cup engraved with his name and date of birth plus birthday gifts, flowers and 100,000 Japanese Yen cash from Miyakonojo Mayor Makoto Nagamine. A Miyakonojo official said: "His favorite food is fried shrimp, but we've heard that he's cut back on oily food. He said he wants to live for another 10 years, that he doesn't want to die."

However after his last birthday, Tanabe's health deteriorated quickly. He had mostly been bed-ridden since early May 2009 and could not eat, due to a chronic heart condition. On June 19, 2009, Tanabe died in his sleep of heart failure at his home in southern Japan. He was 113 years 274 days old. Upon Tanabe's death, English World War I veteran Henry Allingham, age 113, became the world's oldest living man, but died a month later.

Longevity

• On 20 October 2005, Tanabe, aged &10000000000000110000000110 years, &1000000000000003200000032 days, moved into the Gerontology Research Group list.
• On 12 June 2006, Tanabe, aged &10000000000000110000000110 years, &10000000000000267000000267 days, became Japan's oldest living man.
• On 24 January 2007, Emiliano Mercado del Toro died, and Tanabe, aged &10000000000000111000000111 years, &10000000000000128000000128 days, became the World's Oldest living man.
• On 6 December 2008, Tanabe, aged &10000000000000113000000113 years, &1000000000000007900000079 days, moved into the top 10 List of living supercentenarians
• On 16 May 2009, Tanabe, aged &10000000000000113000000113 years, &10000000000000240000000240 days, moved into the top 100 longest lived people ever
• On 27 May 2009, Tanabe, aged &10000000000000113000000113 years, &10000000000000251000000251 days, moved into the top 10 oldest verified men ever
• On 19 June, 2009, Tanabe died, aged 113 years 274 days as the last documented man born in 1895.

See also

• List of Japanese supercentenarians
• List of the verified oldest men
• List of the verified oldest people
• Oldest people

References

Records
Preceded by Emiliano Mercado del Toro	Oldest recognized living man 24 January 2007 – 19 June 2009	Succeeded by Henry Allingham