June 11, 2024

All Hail the Centenarians of Moscow


All Hail the Centenarians of Moscow
Moscow in 1923, the decade when the many of centenarians of Moscow were born.  Kadel & Herbert, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Speaking on a panel at an International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, Moscow Deputy Mayor Anastasia Rakova revealed that Moscow is home to over 1000 citizens over the age of 100. This is over two decades older than the average Russian life expectancy of 79. 

Most of these Muscovites were alive for nearly the entire lifespan of the Soviet Union. The oldest recorded living citizen in Moscow was born in 1916, and at 108 is older even than the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, and missed overlapping lifetimes with Leo Tolstoy by only six years. 

Rakova mentioned that many of these senior citizens take part in the "Moscow Longevity" project, which includes free exercise and educational classes for pensioners over 55 (for women) and 60 (for men).

In 2017, Russian Life collected the stories of 22 centenarians born in 1917, and published them in the book Resilience. It has a Russian version and a companion movie.

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