pitkäikäisimpiä

Pitkäikäisimpiä is a Finnish term used to describe the longest-lived individuals or species within a given group. It is a superlative form derived from the adjective pitkäikäinen (long‑lived) and is commonly used in both everyday language and scientific or encyclopedic writing to indicate exceptional longevity. The phrase can refer to people, animals, or even other objects that have unusually long lifespans, and is often paired with a context such as a country, species, or time period, for example maaimaisen pitkäikäisimpiä eläimiä (the world’s longest‑lived animals).

In human contexts, the term is used to discuss individuals known for extreme longevity. The oldest well-documented human lifespans belong to Jeanne Calment of France, who lived 122 years. Other extensively verified long-lived people include Jiroemon Kimura of Japan, who reached 116 years. Discussions of pitkäikäisimpiä humans typically emphasize verified ages and the social and health factors that influence extreme longevity, rather than sensationalism.

Among animals, several species are cited among the pitkäikäisimpiä. The Greenland shark is estimated to reach ages of 270 years or more, making it one of the longest‑lived vertebrates. Bowhead whales have estimates surpassing 200 years. Ocean quahog clams have verified ages over 500 years, with individual specimens such as Ming around 507 years. These examples illustrate how longevity is measured and compared across taxa.

The term is employed in demography, zoology, and popular science to summarize the upper limits of lifespan within groups. See also longevity, lifespan, aging, and Finnish grammatical forms for superlatives.