Family and friends say Khvichava's mind is still very clear.
Antisa Khvichava, reportedly 130-year-old Georgian woman, looks at her birthday cake during a ceremony marking her birthday at home.Former Soviet Republic of Georgia authorities say that a woman in a remote mountain village there turned 130 on Thursday. This makes her the oldest person on Earth.
Antisa Khvichava from Georgia was born on July 8, 1880. She currently lives with her grandson who is 40-years-old in a vine-covered country house in the mountains. Khvichava retired when she was 85 from her job as a tea and corn picker.
Khvichava said that she’s always been healthy and has worked all of her life.
Khvichava’s birth certificate was lost at some point over the past century, making it hard to immediately verify her age. However, two Soviet-era documents back-up that she is indeed 130. Plus, many family members, officials, friends, and neighbors attest to her being the oldest person on Earth.
Currently, the Gerontology Research Group recognizes 114-year-old Eugenie Blanchard of Saint Barthelemy, France as the oldest person in the world. They have yet to examine Khvichava’s claim.
Khvichava had three children in her lifetime. Two of them died of hunger during World War II. Her 70-year-old son, who she had at age 60, is still alive. Khvichava has 10 grandchildren, 12 great grandchildren and six great, great grandchildren.
Khvichava has some difficulty walking and her fingers have been deformed by age, which means she can no longer do her favorite pastime of knitting. However, she makes a point of walking unaided to the outhouse on the other side of the yard whenever needed.
All of her family and friends say that Khvichava has a very clear mind and is still able to think rationally.
»Yahoo!: Georgia claims it has world's oldest woman at age 130
»New York Daily News: Could she be the world's oldest person? Russia claims Antisa Khvichava is 130 years old