‘127-year-old African man dies’

AFRICA: OCT. 3 – The family of Natabay Tinsiew, who died in Eritrea at the age of 127, is expected to set a world record for the longest living person.

His grandson, Zere Natabay, told the BBC the reason he lived so long was “patience, generosity and a happy life”.

The family of Natabay Tinsiew said he died peacefully on Monday in his remote village of Azefa – which is found in a gorge surrounded by mountains and has a population of around 300 people.

According to his grandson, the church’s birth registration records show that he was born in 1894 and that a church service was held for him the same year. In that sense, he was 127 years old when he died.

But according to his family, he was born in 1884, but according to Christianity, he was admitted to the church when a priest came to the village when he was only 10 years old.

Father Mentay, who had been a pastor in the village for seven years, confirmed in church documents that he was born in 1894.

He said the villagers celebrated his 120th birthday in 2014 in his presence. Grandson Jeremy has told the Guinness Book of World Records.

Jean Calment, a French woman who died in 1997 at the age of 122, is considered the longest surviving person. Natabay was married in 1934 and his wife died in 2019 at the age of 99. He was a pastoralist by profession and saw five generations grow up in his lifetime.