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Gunborg Hancock
Gunborg Hancock
Birth: 20 April 1912
Helsinki, Uusimaa, Russian Empire (now Finland)
Death: 16 October 2024
Lilla Essingen, Stockholm, Sweden
Age: 112 years, 179 days
Country: FinlandFINSwedenSWE
Validated

Gunborg Marita Hancock (née Westling; 20 April 1912 - 16 October 2024) was a Finnish-born Swedish supercentenarian who was the oldest living person in Sweden and the Nordic Countries at the time of her death. Her age was validated by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG) in September 2023.

Biography[]

Gunborg Hancock was born as Gunborg Marita Westling in Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland on 20 April 1912. Her parents were Georg Westling (1879–1930) and Elin Lundblad (1875–1953) who was adopted. She had two sisters: Maj-lis (1908–1967) and Asta (1910–1977).

She remembered when the Germans came to Helsingfors in 1918. She married George Londen (1910–1940). He died in winter war. In 1943, she married the painter and ceramicist Robert Hancock (1912–1993).

When the Germans entered the country in 1944, she and Robert fled to Sweden with a lot of Jews in a passenger ships. In Sweden, they lived with another family. Hancock worked at a printing company. Later, Robert wished to study in France, so they moved to Paris. Hancock worked as a typograph, but she never went to the meetings. She wouldn't know what they thinking about her. She also lived for a while in London.

She and Robert divorced in 1958, and Gunborg later returned to Stockholm. She had no children.

In 2017, she was in a podcast. She has no longevity in her family, but she likes to live, and is curious about new people. She is the oldest of the 56,000 war refugees who fled from Finland to Sweden during the World War II.

She became the oldest known living person in Sweden, following the death of 112-year-old Flarid Lagerlund on 9 April 2022. Following the death of 110-year-old Astrid Qvist on 18 July 2022, she became the oldest known living Finnish-born person and the oldest living person in Nordic Countries.

Gunborg Hancock died on 16 October 2024 in Lilla Essingen, Stockholm, Sweden at the age of 112 years, 179 days.

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References[]


Sweden's Oldest Living Person Titleholders (VE)

Anna Matilda Johansson • Elin Johansson • Selma Andersson • Clara Hedwin • Anna Wetterhall • Alfred Lagerstrom • Anna Persson • Karl Ljungberg/ Carolina Nilsson • Julia Karlsson • Wilhelmine Sande • Hilda Pettersson • Anna Andersson • Gustava Vikstrom • Ida Johnson • Elfrida Andersson • Alma Klingvall • Alfrida Engblom • Hulda Johansson • Ellen Andreasson • Hilma Rothman • Ellen Johansson • Clara Asberg • Hilda Grahn/ Teresia Lindahl • Elsa Moberg • Jenny Karlsson • Johanne SvenssonAnders Engberg • Elin Antonsson • Astrid Zachrison • Rut Mikaelsson • Maria Eriksson • Ester JohanssonRuth Engstrom • Ellen Vestling • Karin Larsson • Gulli Bergendahl • Rut Emriksson • Ingeborg Damgren • Nanny HalvardssonAlice Ostlund • Carl Mattsson • Flarid Lagerlund • Gunborg HancockAgnes Bostrom

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