Still smiling at 117, Albanian may be world's oldest woman

The 117-year-old Qamile Marra holds a black and white photograph from her youth during an interview with AFP in the garden of her home in the village of Ferras, near Kucove, some 80 kilometres from the capital Tirana

At 117, Qamile Marra is not particularly concerned with proving she may be the world's oldest woman -- or even persuading Albanian pension officials that she is not dead.

For a woman born under Ottoman rule, who turned 36 a fortnight before the end of World War II and outlived Albania's communist dictatorship, her focus remains firmly on enjoying life.

"Life is beautiful, like Mount Tomorr in bloom," she told AFP with a smile, referring to one of Albania's loftiest peaks as she sat outside her home in Ferras, about 100 kilometres (60 miles) south of the capital.

Surrounded by fruit trees, Marra has spent almost her entire life in the village, growing her own food and tending livestock.

"You live as long as God has decreed," she said, her deeply wrinkled face framed by a traditional white headscarf.

According to her birthdate as listed on several official documents -- August 19, 1909 -- Marra would be two days older than Britain's Ethel Caterham, recognised by Guinness World Records as the world's oldest living woman.

Proving the age of exact "supercentenarians" can be difficult.

Many of the people famous for living the longest are from places where shoddy recordkeeping and suspected pension fraud are rampant, according to a study that won the 2024 Ig Nobel prize, which awards offbeat scientific research.

But Marra has extensive records that appear to confirm her age.

Her relatives have contacted Guinness Records and hold a birth certificate issued in 1945, a passport issued in 1978 and a recent identity card, all showing the same date of birth.

Her age even surprised local authorities, who stopped her pension when she turned 100, according to her 80-year-old son Hysen.

"They didn't believe my mother was still alive," he said, recalling how he had to show proof, including witness statements, to resume the meagre payments.

Earlier this month, the government issued her a special state pension to mark her age.

The answer to her extraordinary longevity may lie in Marra's habits and lifestyle.

She rises early to sweep the yard, water her flowers and feed the chickens before settling down with a coffee.

She still enjoys regular walks through her carefully tended orchard with her son, who lives with her, stopping to pick ripe pomegranates along the way.

She also slips basil leaves in her pockets to "enjoy the aroma".

Whatever the secret, her son said she has never even visited a doctor.

"She is in good health and has never taken any medication."

Marra's husband died 36 years ago, but she still smiles when talking about their decades together -- an arranged marriage, but a loving one.

"Otherwise, how could I have had seven children with him?" she said.

She has now seen five generations of her family grow up around her.

Tears welled up as she remembered the family and friends she had lost. But her face brightened when a niece called to chat.

"I've watched them get engaged, marry and build their own homes and lives," she said.

"When I see people coming and going in the house, I am so happy."

From her own youth, she has kept a single photograph: a near-century-old picture of a young woman wearing a white scarf just like the one she had on.