世上最年長老人去世 享年116歲
Jiroemon Kimura, the world's oldest person, and the oldest man to have ever lived, has died at the age of 116.
Kimura – who was born on 19 April 1897, when Queen Victoria was on the British throne – died of natural causes early on Wednesday, Japanese media said.
The Kyoto prefecture resident became the oldest man in recorded history in late December 2012 at the age of 115 years and 253 days, following the death of Dina Manfredini, an Italian-American who lived in Iowa. The longest-living person in history was Jeanne Calment, a French woman who died in 1997 at the age of 122.
Kimura died in hospital in his hometown of Kyotango, local government officials said. He had been receiving treatment for pneumonia since late last month.
In a sign of Japan's extraordinary longevity, his successor as the world's oldest person is compatriot Misao Okawa, a 115-year-old Osaka woman who already holds the title of the world's oldest woman.
Until his death Kimura was one of only a dozen people alive who were born in the 1890s. He lived through the reign of four Japanese emperors and the administrations of 61 prime ministers.
Kimura conceded that he spent a lot of time in bed at the home he shared with his grandson's widow, Eiko Kimura, who served him his favourite breakfast of rice porridge and miso soup.
He put his longevity down to waking early, eating small amounts, reading the newspaper and watching parliamentary debates on television.
Genetics may have also played a part: four of his siblings lived beyond the age of 90 and his youngest brother died aged 100. Kimura had seven grandchildren, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren and 13 great-great grandchildren.
After leaving school at 14 Kimura spent 45 years working for the post office. He was retired more than half a century but helped on his son's farm until he was 90.
Okawa, who was born in 1898 during the Spanish-American war, has said that she is not fussy about what she eats, although she's fond of pickled mackerel. Her new status has yet to be confirmed by Guinness World Records.
Japan's average life expectancy when Kimura was born was around 44 years; it now stands at 83. The country is home to more than 51,000 centenarians and around 20 supercentenarians, or people aged 110 or older.
木村次郎右衛門是世上最年長的人，也是世上在世時間最長的人，他已去世，享年116歲。
木村生於1897年4月19日。據日本媒體報導，2013年6月12日，木村自然死亡。
2012年12月，美國愛荷華州的意大利裔美國人狄娜·曼佛瑞迪尼（Dina Manfredini）去世後，日本京都的木村以115歲253天的年齡成爲了歷史記錄上最年長的人。歷史上在世時間最長的是一名叫做珍妮·卡爾門（Jeanne Calment）的法國女性，她以122歲的高齡於1997年去世。
木村家鄉京丹後市的政府官員表示，木村在京丹後市的醫院中去世。上月末起，木村就一直在接受肺炎的治療。
繼他之後，世上最年長的老人也是一名日本人，叫做大川貞緒（Misao Okawa），115歲。她已享有世上最年長女性的稱號。由此可見，日本人享有驚人的長壽。
死前，木村是爲數不多出生於19世紀90年代的人之一。他在世期間，日本經歷了四位皇帝和61任首相的統治。
木村承認，他的大部分時間都躺在家中，由孫子的遺孀木村瑛子（Eiko Kimura）照料，瑛子會他做他最喜歡的稀飯和味增湯當作早餐。
他將自己的長壽歸因爲起得早、吃得少、讀新聞以及看電視上的議會辯論。
遺傳基因也許也幫了不少忙：他的兄弟姐妹中有四人活過了90歲，他最小的弟弟活到了100歲。木村有7個子女，14個孫子女，25個曾孫子女以及13個曾曾孫子女。
木村14歲時離開學校，之後在郵局幹了45年。他已經退休了半餘個世紀，但直到90歲前，他還在兒子的農場幫忙。
大川出生於1898年美西戰爭之時，她說自己雖然喜歡醃青花魚，但並不在意每頓吃什麼。她最年長的身份還未被吉尼斯世界記錄確認。
木村出生時，日本的平均壽命預期值約爲44歲；現已達到83歲。日本國內現有5.1萬餘名百歲老人，以及約20名年齡在110歲或以上的超級人瑞。
