World’s oldest person, Spaniard Maria Branyas Morera, dies aged 117

The world’s oldest known person has died aged 117, her family have announced. 

Maria Branyas Morera died peacefully in her sleep, having survived two pandemics, two world wars and Spain’s civil war. Her family wrote on X: “Maria Branyas has left us. She died as she wished: in her sleep, peacefully and without pain. We will always remember her for her advice and her kindness.”

Branyas, who lived for the past 20 years in a nursing home in Olot, north-eastern Spain, had said that she was feeling “weak” before passing away. “The time is near. Don’t cry, I don’t like tears. And above all, don’t suffer for me. Wherever I go, I will be happy,” she said on her Twitter account, run by her family.

Branyas lived through the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic, the first and second world wars, and Spain’s civil war. She even contracted Covid-19 in 2020, when she was 113 years old but made a full recovery. 

Banyas Held the Record of World’s Oldest Person Since January 2023

Guinness World Records officially recognized Branyas’s status as the world’s oldest person in January 2023. The title had previously been held by the French nun Lucile Randon, who died aged 118.

The world’s oldest person is now Toniko Itooka, from Japan. According to the US Gerontology Research Group, Itooka is now 116 years old, having been born on 23 May 1908.

The Secret to Longevity: Happiness

Many theories attempt to explain certain people’s extraordinary longevity. While some put it down to genetics, others have another theory: longevity is thanks to a life well-lived. 

So what about Branyas? She told the Guinness World Records she believed her longevity stemmed from, “order, tranquillity, good connection with family and friends, contact with nature, emotional stability, no worries, no regrets, lots of positivity and staying away from toxic people”. She also saw luck as an important part of living a long life. 

An Extraordinary Life that Saw Immense Change

Maria Branyas was born in San Francisco in 1907 after her family moved to the area from Mexico. The family then returned to their native Spain in 1915, with the first world war in full swing. This significantly impacted the crossing across the Atlantic, a voyage marred in tragedy for the young Maria. Her father died from tuberculosis during the voyage, his coffin thrown into the sea.

From there, Branyas and her mother settled in Barcelona. In 1931, she married a doctor; they lived happily for more than four decades before the death of her husband at the age of 72. The couple had three children, 11 grandchildren, and multiple great-grandchildren.

What’s the Key to a Long and Happy Life?

Why do some people like Maria Branyas live such long and contended lives? The answer continues to confound scientists, who put longevity down to a number of factors including diet and good health. 

So what’s the key to a long and happy life? Is it luck, a Mediterranean diet, a stress-free life, or genetics? Tell us what you think the key to longevity is in the comments!