Centenarians in Denmark In the Past and the Present

Jeune Bernard, Skytthe Axel.- Centenarians in Denmark In the Past and the Present The Danish Centenarian Register, based on parish registers and censuses, consists of more than 5,000 Danish centenarians who have been identified by name, date of death and reported age through January 1, 1999. The level of centenarians was almost constant in the period from 1860 to 1940, grew only Population: An English Selection, 13 (1), 2001, 261-264 slowly until the 1960s, and has increased tremendously since 1970. Before 1840 very few centenarians could be verified, and only about half of the alleged centenarians reported in the period 1840-1899 were actually centenarians. By a backward extrapolation based on a period with valid data, it was estimated that the first centenarian did not emerge until after 1790. One conclusion to be drawn from this study is that even in countries like Denmark, with registration of births and deaths for more than 200 years, it is extremely difficult to validate the majority of reported centenarians in the 18th and 19th centuries.Jeune B., Skytthe A. Centenarians in Denmark In the Past and the Present. In: Population, an English selection, 13ᵉ année, n°1, 2001. Biodemographic perspectives on human longevity. pp. 75-93