This article contains various lists of state leaders organized by age, defined as heads of state and/or heads of government.
Oldest serving state leaders[]
Top ten currently serving[]
Paul Biya, currently the oldest serving state leader
People currently serving as head of state and/or head of government, a party leader of a one-party state, or a representative of a head of state.
| Rank | Name | Position | Assumed office | Born | Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Biya | President of Cameroon | 1982[1] | 13 February 1933 | 92 years 280 days |
| 2 | Mahmoud Abbas | President of the Palestinian National Authority,
President of the State of Palestine |
2005 | 15 November 1935 | 90 years 4 days |
| 3 | Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud | King of Saudi Arabia | 2015[2] | 31 December 1935 | 89 years 323 days |
| 4 | Francis | Pope of the Holy See,
Sovereign of the Vatican City State |
2013 | 17 December 1936 | 88 years 337 days |
| 5 | Harald V | King of Norway[3] | 1991 | 21 February 1937 | 88 years 272 days |
| 6 | Ali Khamenei | Supreme Leader of Iran | 1989[4] | 19 April 1939 | 86 years 214 days |
| 7 | Muhammad Yunus | Chief Adviser of Bangladesh | 2024 | 28 June 1940 | 85 years 144 days |
| 8 | Mishal I | Emir of Kuwait | 2023 | 27 September 1940 | 85 years 53 days |
| 9 | Michael D. Higgins | President of Ireland | 2011 | 18 April 1941 | 84 years 215 days |
| 10 | Sergio Mattarella | President of Italy | 2015 | 23 July 1941 | 84 years 119 days |
Top ten of all time[]
Giovanni Paolo Lascaris, the oldest serving state leader of all time whose age is fully verifiable.
| Rank | Name | Position | Last year in office
(reason term ended) |
Age at end |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Giovanni Paolo Lascaris | Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller | 1657 (death) | 97 years 47 days |
| Ruler of Malta | ||||
| 2 | Elizabeth II | Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms[5] | 2022 (death) | 96 years, 140 days |
| 3 | Prem Tinsulanonda | Regent of Thailand | 2016 (tenure ended) | 96 years 97 days |
| 4 | George Tupou I | King of Tonga | 1893 (death) | 95 years 76 days |
| 5 | Mahathir Mohamad | Prime Minister of Malaysia | 2020 (resigned) | 94 years 234 days |
| 6 | Nicolò da Ponte | Doge of Venice | 1585 (death) | 94 years 196 days |
| 7 | Malietoa Tanumafili II | O le Ao o le Malo of Samoa | 2007 (death) | 94 years 127 days |
| 8 | Robert Mugabe | President of Zimbabwe | 2017 (resigned) | 93 years 273 days |
| 9 | Leo XIII | Pope of the Holy See[6] | 1903 (death) | 93 years 140 days |
| 10 | Beji Caid Essebsi | President of Tunisia | 2019 (death) | 92 years 238 days |
Youngest serving state leaders[]
Top ten currently serving[]
Kristrún Frostadóttir, the youngest serving state leader
| Rank | Name | Position | Assumed office | Born | Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kristrún Frostadóttir | Prime Minister of Iceland | 2024 | 12 May 1988 | 37 years 191 days |
| 2 | Ibrahim Traoré | President of the Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration of Burkina Faso | 2022 | 14 March 1988 | 37 years 250 days |
| Interim President of Burkina Faso | 2022 | ||||
| 3 | Daniel Noboa | President of Ecuador | 2023 | 30 November 1987 | 37 years 354 days |
| 4 | Milojko Spajić | Prime Minister of Montenegro | 2023 | 24 September 1987 | 38 years 56 days |
| 5 | Jakov Milatović | President of Montenegro | 2023 | 7 December 1986 | 38 years 347 days |
| 6 | Paetongtarn Shinawatra | Prime Minister of Thailand | 2024 | 21 August 1986 | 39 years 90 days |
| 7 | Gabriel Boric | President of Chile | 2022 | 11 February 1986 | 39 years 281 days |
| 8 | Mohammed bin Salman | Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia | 2022 | 31 August 1985 | 40 years 80 days |
| 9 | Mahamat Déby | President of Chad[7] | 2024 | 4 April 1984 | 41 years 230 days |
| 10 | Kim Jong Un | Supreme Leader of North Korea[8] | 2011 | 8 January 1983[9] | 42 years 315 days[9] |
Top ten since 1800[]
Currently living
| Rank | Name | Position | Assumed office | Age when assuming office |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alfonso XIII | King of Spain | 1886 | Template:Ayd[10] |
| 2 | Sobhuza II | King of Swaziland | 1899 | Template:Ayd |
| 3 | Fuad II | King of Egypt | 1952 | 0 years Expression error: Unrecognized punctuation character "_". days |
| 4 | Puyi | Emperor of China | 1908 | 2 years 298 days |
| 5 | Rajendra | King of Nepal | 1816 | 2 years 352 days |
| 6 | Isabella II | Queen of Spain | 1833 | 2 years 354 days |
| 7 | Gyanendra | King of Nepal | 1950[11] | 3 years 123 days |
| 8 | Guangxu | Emperor of China | 1875 | 3 years 195 days |
| 9 | Faisal II | King of Iraq | 1939 | Template:Ayd |
| 10 | Pedro II | Emperor of Brazil | 1831 | 5 years 126 days |
Oldest state leaders[]
The following lists show the oldest people who have served office as state leader (not limited to their age while in office).
Top ten living[]
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Guillermo Rodríguez, the oldest-living state leader
Main article: List of oldest living state leaders
| Rank | Name | Position | In office | Born | Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guillermo Rodríguez | Acting President of Ecuador | 1972–1976 | 4 November 1923 | 102 years 15 days |
| 2 | Mahathir Mohamad | Prime Minister of Malaysia | 1981–2003; 2018–2020 | 10 July 1925 | 100 years 132 days |
| 3 | Mohammad Hasan Sharq | Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Afghanistan | 1988–1989 | 17 July 1925 | 100 years 125 days |
| 4 | Abdoulaye Wade | President of Senegal | 2000–2012 | 29 May 1926 | 99 years 174 days |
| 5 | Valdas Adamkus | President of Lithuania | 1998–2003; 2004–2009 | 3 November 1926 | 99 years 16 days |
| 6 | Raif Dizdarević | President of the Presidency of Yugoslavia | 1988–1989 | 9 December 1926 | 98 years 345 days |
| 7 | Kim Yong-nam | Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of North Korea | 1998–2019 | 4 February 1928 | 97 years 288 days |
| 8 | Arthur Foulkes | Governor-General of the Bahamas | 2010–2014 | 11 May 1928 | 97 years 192 days |
| 9 | Péter Boross | Prime Minister of Hungary | 1993–1994 | 27 August 1928 | 97 years 84 days |
| 10 | Zhu Rongji | Premier of the State Council | 1993–2003 | 23 October 1928 | 97 years 27 days |
Top ten since 1800[]
Chau Sen Cocsal Chhum, the longest-lived state leader
| Rank | Name | Position | Born | Died | Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chau Sen Cocsal Chhum | Acting Prime Minister of Cambodia (1962) | 1905 | 2009 | 103 years, 143 days |
| 2 | Celâl Bayar | Prime Minister of Turkey (1937–1939) | 1883 | 1986 | 103 years, 98 days |
| President of Turkey (1950–1960) | |||||
| 3 | Antoine Pinay | Prime Minister of France (1952–1953) | 1891 | 1994 | 102 years, 348 days |
| 4 | André Prunet-Foch | French Viguier in Andorra (1977–1980) | 1914 | 2017 | 102 years, 211 days |
| 5 | Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni | Prime Minister of Japan (1945) | 1887 | 1990 | 102 years, 48 days |
| 6 | Guillermo Rodríguez | Acting President of Ecuador (1972–1976) | 1923 | Living | 102 years 15 days |
| 7 | Babiker Awadalla | Prime Minister of Sudan (1969) | 1917 | 2019 | 101 years, 321 days |
| 8 | Willem Drees | Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1948–1958) | 1886 | 1988 | 101 years, 314 days |
| 9 | Đỗ Mười | Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Vietnam (1988–1991) | 1917 | 2018 | 101 years, 241 days |
| General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (1991–1997) | |||||
| 10 | Tomiichi Murayama | Prime Minister of Japan (1994–1986) | 1924 | 2025 | 101 years, 228 days |
See also[]
- Lists of state leaders
Notes[]
- ↑ Previously served as Prime Minister of Cameroon from 1975–1982.
- ↑ Served concurrently as Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia from 2015–2022.
- ↑ The Kingdom of Norway includes the dependent territory of Svalbard.
- ↑ Previously served as President of Iran from 1981–1989.
- ↑ In 1952, Princess Elizabeth acceded as the monarch of seven Commonwealth realms. At the time of her death, she reigned as Queen of 15 sovereign states including the United Kingdom. From 1957–1983, most of her British colonies attained independence, and some joined the other realms in different years; most states ceased to be a realm upon becoming republics.
- ↑ The Vatican was in a territorial dispute with the Kingdom of Italy from 1870–1929.
- ↑ Previously President of the Transitional Military Council of Chad from 2021–2022, and Transitional President of Chad from 2022–2024.
- ↑ The term Supreme Leader is used as a description, for the sake of brevity, rather than being an official title of a single office. The actual offices held by Kim Jong Un are: General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, President of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK, and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the DPRK.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Kim's year of birth has been the subject of dispute. North Korean authorities and state-run media have stated Kim's birth date is 8 January 1982, but South Korean intelligence officials believe the actual date is a year later. Until 2018, the U.S. Treasury Department had claimed that his year of birth is 1984.
- ↑ Became a monarch at birth as his father, Alfonso XII, had died the previous year.
- ↑ Gyanendra's first occupation of the throne was in 1950; he was deposed in the 1951 Nepalese revolution.
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