Brazilian nun Inah Canabarro Lucas has been officially recognized as the oldest living person in the world at 116 years old!
The announcement was made by longevity company LongeviQuest following the death of Tomiko Itooka of Japan on December 29.
As she celebrated her 110th birthday in 2018, Sister Inah received an Apostolic blessing from Pope Francis, along with a certificate, which she proudly displays on the community’s souvenir shelf.
When asked about the secret to her longevity, she attributes it to the Lord, saying,
"He is the secret of life. He is the secret of everything."
The nun is also passionate about football and is considered a loyal fan of Internacional, from RS.
Sister Inah is not only the oldest person in the world today, but also the 20th oldest person on record. She became the oldest living person in Brazil on Jan. 23, 2022, after the death of 116-year-old Antonia da Santa Cruz.
Later, on July 30, 2022, after the death of 114-year-old Colombian Sofia Rojas, she became the oldest living person in all of South America and Latin America.
Sister Inah is also the second oldest nun in recorded history, surpassed only by Lucile Randon (Sister André) of France, who passed away in January 2023 at the age of 118 years and 340 days. Inah is the last known living person born in 1908 and one of only three remaining people born in the entire 1900s.
About Sister Inah Canabarro Lucas
Inah Canabarro Lucas was born on June 8, 1908, in São Francisco de Assis, Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, the daughter of João Antônio Lucas (1870–1923) and Mariana Canabarro Lucas (1878–1954).
Although Inah herself always claimed her birth date was May 27, 1908, later research indicates that she was probably born 11 days later. As an infant, she was so frail that many doubted she would survive, but she defied the odds.
At the age of 16, she began her religious journey at the Santa Teresa de Jesus boarding school in Santana do Livramento, Rio Grande do Sul. She was baptized there on April 21, 1926, at the age of 17, and later moved to Montevideo, Uruguay, where she was confirmed in the Catholic Church on October 1, 1929, at the age of 21.
In 1930, she returned to Brazil to teach Portuguese and mathematics in the Tijuca neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. She professed her first vows in 1931 and on July 27, 1934, at the age of 26, she made her perpetual vows. She returned to Santana do Livramento in 1942 to continue her vocation as a teacher. She worked as a teacher until her retirement in 1995.