Oldest Man In The World Celebrates 115th Birthday.

The world’s oldest man has celebrated his 115th birthday – surrounded by four generations of his family.

Jiroemon Kimura thanked ‘the sun above’ as well as eating only small portions of food for his good health and long life, during a celebration yesterday.

The supercentenarian was born in Japan on April 19 in 1897 and is the undisputed third oldest person living person, according to the Gerontology Research Group.He would have been 6-years-old when the Wright brothers flew the first plane ever, already 64-years-old when Yuri Gagarin first flew into space and 93-years-old when the World Wide Web came to being.

Speaking from his home in Kyoto to a crowd of family, friends and media, he said: ‘I am delighted beyond words.’

When asked what he put his reaching this grand old age down to, he replied, ‘I don't know exactly, maybe it's all thanks to the sun above me.

‘I am always looking up towards the sky, that is how I am.’

Mr Kimura has 14 grandchildren, 25 great grandchildren and 13 great-great-grandchildren, the youngest being an 11-month-old great-great-grandson.

He worked for the post office for 40 years and after retiring he turned to farming until age 90.

He is said to enjoy talking to guests and keep an active interest in politics, still following live parliamentary debates on television.

Kimura also occasionally reads newspapers because he does not want to 'lose track of things going on these days,' according to the Japan Times.

And while holding his 11-month-old great-great-grandson Akikazu Oda on his lap, Mr Kimura added: 'When I hold a sweet child, I feel like I'm in heaven.'

Kimura says he's also been keeping his mind fit by learning new things.

'Thank you very much. You are very kind man': I've been learning to speak in English," he told reporters, showing off his newly acquired English phrase.

According to him, small portions of food and stopping eating when his stomach was about 80 per cent full, is the secret to his age.

Kimura mentioned has told of his survival of the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that hit Kyoto in 1927 and killed over 3,000 people.

The oldest Briton on the list drawn up by the Gerontology Research Group is Grace Jones who was born on December 7, 1899, and is 112 year and 134 days.