Guinness World Records (GWR) released a photo on their official Instagram page that has gone viral. The story is about two siblings from Japan who at the age of 107, who became the world’s oldest identical twins. People have been blown away by the record’s popularity. It’s possible that it’ll have the same impact on you as well.
Guinness World Records sends congratulatory message
“Congratulations to 107-year-old Japanese sisters Umeno Sumiyama and Koume Kodama, who have been confirmed as the world’s oldest identical twins,” GWR said beside the post.
“As of September 1, 2021, the sisters have set records for the oldest identical twins living (female) and the oldest identical twins ever (female) at 107 years and 300 days.”
They revealed more information about the twins in the following lines. “From a young age, the twins began to live separately. Koume left the island after finishing elementary school to assist her uncle. They began to spend more time together later in life, starting in their 70s,” they stated.
About the twins
On November 5, 1913, Umeno Sumiyama and Koume Kodama, the third and fourth of 11 siblings, were born on Shodoshima Island in western Japan.
When Kodama was assigned to work as a maid in Oita, on Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu, they were separated after elementary school. Sumiyama, on the other hand, stayed on the island where they grew up and had their own family.
Later, the sisters reflected on their terrible youth. They say they were bullied as children due to prejudice in Japan against children of numerous births.
How did they re-connect?
For decades, the sisters were too preoccupied with their own lives to meet until they were 70, when they began conducting pilgrimages together to some of Shikoku’s 88 temples and relished the opportunity to reunite.
According to Guinness World Records Ltd., Sumiyama and Kodama were 107 years and 300 days old as of September 1, beating the previous record of 107 years and 175 days set by famed Japanese sisters Kin Narita and Gin Kanie.
Their families told Guinness that the sisters used to joke about outliving the previous record holders, popularly known as “Kin-san, Gin-san,” who rose to idol status in the late 1990s due to their age and sense of humour.
According to Guinness, the certificates for their records were mailed to the separate nursing homes where they currently reside due to anti-coronavirus procedures, and Sumiyama accepted hers with tears of joy.
Oldest country of the World-Japan
According to the health and welfare ministry, almost 29% of Japan’s 125 million people are 65 or older, making it the world’s fastest ageing country. About 86,510 of them are centenarians, with half of them celebrating their 100th birthday this year.
The Japanese population is ageing as a result of one of the lowest fertility rates in the world mixed with the longest life expectancy.
Because of low reproductive rates, Japan’s overall population is declining, but the aged population is quickly growing. Also including improved diet, as well as advanced medical and pharmacological technology, lowered disease prevalence and improved living conditions.
