Although Italian supercentenarians have become a significant phenomenon only in recent years, the number of centenarians in the country has doubled every six to 10 years. The oldest Italian to live was Antonio Todde from Sardinia, who died at age 112 in 2002. Between 1998 and 2000, the rate of supercentenarians was only 0.05 per million. (Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research)