Japan's Jiroemon Kimura who was recognised in December 2012 by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest man in the history of mankind, died at the age of 116. He was born in 1897.
He died in hospital early Wednesday morning after being hospitalised with pneumonia in early May, an official in Kyoto’s Kyotango city said in a statement.
Kimura had seven children, 14 grandchildren, 25 great grandchildren and 13 great-great-grandchildren.
Japan has about 40 centenarians ( persons who are 100 years old or more) per 100,000 people and has the world's highest proportion of elderly. Life expectancy is roughly 83, a figure that is expected to exceed 90 for women by 2050.
Kimura held the Guinness Records after French woman Jeanne Calment, died in 1997 at the age of 122.
