World's Oldest Living Person, Maria Branyas Morera, Dies At Age 117

Madrid: Maria Branyas, an American-born Spaniard considered the world's oldest person at 117 years old, has died, her family said on Tuesday.

In a post on Branyas' X account, her family wrote in Catalan: “Maria Branyas has left us. She has gone the way she wanted: in her sleep, at peace, and without pain.” The Gerontology Research Group, which validates details of people thought to be 110 or older, listed Branyas as the oldest known person in the world after the death of French nun Lucile Randon last year.

Branyas Defeated COVID-19 At Age of 113

Branyas, born in San Francisco on March 4, 1907, lived in New Orleans for a time before her family moved back to Spain when she was young. She recounted having memories of crossing the Atlantic Ocean during World War I.

Branyas' Picture Memories Across Two Centuries | Watch

Branyas, who lived through the 1918 flu, the first and second world wars and Spain’s civil war, got Covid-19 in 2020, just weeks after her 113th birthday. She was confined to her room at the home but made a full recovery.

Her X account is called “Super Catalan Grandma” and bears the description: “I am old, very old, but not an idiot.” At age 113, Branyas tested positive for COVID-19 during the global pandemic, but avoided developing severe symptoms that claimed tens of thousands of older Spaniards.

Now Japan’s Tomiko Itooka Becomes World's Oldest Person

The next oldest person recognized by the Gerontology Research Group is Tomiko Itooka from Japan, who is currently 116 years old.

At the time of her death she was living in a nursing home in Catalan town of Olot.

Her family wrote that Branyas told them days before her death: “I don't know when, but very soon this long journey will come to an end. Death will find me worn down from having lived so much, but I want to meet it with a smile, feeling free and satisfied.” 

(With inputs from agencies)