History Main / MethuselahSyndrome

** And if you think Armando Dippet was old, the oldest wizard on record, Barry Wee Willie Winkle, celebrated his ''755th'' birthday on August 14, 1991. He invited every witch and wizard he'd ever known, for a total for about 30 million! Ironically, he's actually lived longer than Nicholas Flamel ([[TheGhost who is known to exist by never makes an appearance]]) the legendary alchemist who invented the Elixir of Immortality!

** Also, while he's over a century old, he does think every so often that a hundred is too old for law enforcement work, has a few problems with his age, and tends to overuse magical health packs.

* A lot of movies and shows with Buddhist monks tend to do this. ''Film/KillBill'', for example, establishes Pai Mei as being either well over 120 or more than a thousand years old, depending on whether you want to go by the original script (which states that Pai Mei was already a martial arts master in 1883), RealLife (where he was in 1647 if not earlier), or the actual film (where David Carradine [[ThrowItIn ad-libbed]] the line into "one double-aught three", or 1003). No explanation is given; it's implied that Pai Mei is just that {{badass}}.

* In ''FireEmblemElibe'', Archsage Athos, Dark Sage Brammimond and the BigBad Nergal are all well over a thousand years old, justified by being among the most powerful magic users ever seen in that 'verse.

** However, a handful of modern scholars think that was a mistranlation and that years meant months. So while 969 months (Just under 81 years) is rather long for the time it's still within the human lifespan, but the problem with this is we have characters fathering children at 5 or 6 years of age. (The biggest problem here is, the Book of Genesis doesn't mention anything about these people except their names and ages; no details about how years were measured or what sort of calendar was used. Some Biblical scholars believe that the names and ages mean nothing at all, and were included to give the impression of a long period of time between Adam and Noah.)
** Another important thing to note is that some versions of the Bible claim that God one day decided that humans lived WAY too long, and decreed that they would live no more than 120 years from that day forward (note the current confirmed world record for longest life is 121; depending on how you view this it's either disproven or spot-on) long before the Great Flood.

[[folder:Myths & Religion]]
* A staple of Myth/MesopotamianMythology. The first two dozen or so kings in the Sumerian King list have reigns that last anywhere between 100 and 43,200 years - the record being held by King En-men-lu-ana of Bad-tibira. Nobody seems to have had a normal-lasting reign until after [[Literature/TheEpicOfGilgamesh Gilgamesh]].
* In Myth/KoreanMythology, Dangun (legendary king and forefather of the Korean People) lived for staggering ''one thousand and thirty-eight years(the time varies for each record, but still over one thousand years)'', before becoming Sanshinryeong (god of the mountain). He is still being worshipped by Korean shamans, even to this day.
* [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Odysseus]]'s dog, said to have survived more than 20 years while sleeping on a dunghill in an era without veterinary care, is a non-human example.
* The TropeNamer:
** Methuselah from the [[Literature/TheBible biblical]] Literature/BookOfGenesis lives 969 years, longer than any human in the Bible. That said, ''most'' humans from before the flood have a given age of several centuries. After the flood, human lifespan gradually decreases to closer to what it is now. There are several figures after this point who are said to have lived just over one hundred, which is technically possible but still unlikely for an ancient Hebrew. In the books after the Pentateuch, which took place much closer to the time of the lives of their writers, people live somewhat more reasonable lifespans.
** However, a handful of modern scholars think that was a mistranlation and that years meant months. So while 969 months (Just under 81 years) is rather long for the time it's still within the human lifespan, but the problem with this is we have characters fathering children at 5 or 6 years of age. (The biggest problem here is, the Book of Genesis doesn't mention anything about these people except their names and ages; no details about how years were measured or what sort of calendar was used. Some Biblical scholars believe that the names and ages mean nothing at all, and were included to give the impression of a long period of time between Adam and Noah.)
** Another important thing to note is that some versions of the Bible claim that God one day decided that humans lived WAY too long, and decreed that they would live no more than 120 years from that day forward (note the current confirmed world record for longest life is 121; depending on how you view this it's either disproven or spot-on) long before the Great Flood.
* Myth/{{Merlin}}, in most versions of the KingArthur mythos. Usually a JustifiedTrope in that Merlin is often the son of a virgin and an immortal demon, and a [[WizardsLiveLonger magician]].
* Hindu texts have old kings reigning for five hundred years and then merely giving up the throne and moving away, so we do not even know if they ever died!
[[/folder]]

* Some monarchs are known to also be this, such as Queen Victoria for the UK and Emperor Franz Josef of Austria-Hungary. Coincidentally, his descendant Otto von Habsburg, had he ruled, would have given ''both'' of them a run for their money: born before UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne, he died in 2011; if he had actually taken the throne in 1922 (when his father historically died, but after the abolition of the monarchy in Austria) and lived as long as he did (i.e. to 2011), he would have had an 89-year reign--the longest of any monarch in human history, with the possible exception of Egyptian Pharaoh Pepi II, mentioned below.

The tendency for ancient and fantasy settings to show humans having very long lifespans despite the lack of any established medical science. People will routinely live to a century or better while remaining lucid and active. Might or might not be explained as AWizardDidIt in the case of magical characters, or EnlightenmentSuperpowers for spiritual ones. Because in fiction age automatically equals wisdom rather than, say, the gradual death of brain cells, he frequently is an OldMaster or a [[{{Mentors}} mentor]]. (Of course, research on senility-due-to-age has been skewed by mental illnesses like Alzheimers; people without those diseases can do very well, but those diseases are all too common.)

** Another important thing to note is that some versions of the Bible claim that God one day decided that humans lived WAY too long, and decreed that they would live no more than 120 years from that day forward (note that considering the world record for longest life is 121, this has been disproven, unless you go with the interpretation that he set the average maximum human lifespan, instead of the maximum.) long before the Great Flood.

* The TropeNamer is Methuselah from the [[Literature/TheBible biblical]] Literature/BookOfGenesis. He lives 969 years, longer than any human in the Bible. That said, ''most'' humans from before the flood have a given age of several centuries. After the flood, human lifespan gradually decreases to closer to what it is now. There are several figures after this point who are said to have lived just over one hundred, which is technically possible but still unlikely for an ancient Hebrew. In the books after the Pentateuch, which took place much closer to the time of the lives of their writers, people live somewhat more reasonable lifespans.
** However, a handful of modern scholars think that was a mistranlation and that years meant months. So while 969 months (Just under 81 years) is rather long for the time it's still within the human lifespan, but the problem with this is we have characters fathering children at 5 or 6 years of age.

** Another important thing to note is that some versions of the Bible claim that God one day decided that humans lived WAY too long, and decreed that they would live no more than 120 years from that day forward(note that considering the world record for longest life is 121, this has been disproven, unless you go with the interpretation that he set the average maximum human lifespan, instead of the maximum.) long before the Great Flood.

* Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun. Seriously, these guys never died (much to UsefulNotes/AndrewJackson's dismay). Clay and Calhoun were elected to Congress as ''Jeffersonian'' Republicans (AKA Democrats) in '''1810.''' Henry Clay then went onto a long political career, ran for president of the United States three times (1824, as a Democratic-Republican, 1832, as a ''National'' Republican, and 1844, as a Whig) before dying as the '''[[UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar Civil War]]''' approached. Basically, he lived through four party changes, and when he died the Whig party pretty much fell apart. Calhoun didn't live as long, but was ''John Quincy Adams' '' Vice-President, and then went onto a very long political career that ''involved practically getting the South to secede from the United States in 1850.'' They may not have lived to be 600 years old, (in fact, they died in their seventies) but Clay and Calhoun are mention more often in the AP US History book than George Washington, Lincoln, FDR, or pretty much any president. Clay, in fact, is mentioned in one book starting about page 200 and then dies on page '''five-hundred six'''. Even though several modern-day politicians spend just as long or even longer in Congress as they did, most of them don't really have much impact on the country.

** This is made even more impressive since the disc runs on AlternativeCalendar where a year is equal to 800 days. This means that in regular earth years Windle nearly reached the age of 285.

* Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun. Seriously, these guys never died (much to UsefulNotes/AndrewJackson's dismay). Clay and Calhoun were elected to Congress as ''Jeffersonian'' Republicans (AKA Democrats) in '''1810.''' Henry Clay then went onto a long political career, ran for president of the United States three times (1824, as a Democratic-Republican, 1832, as a ''National'' Republican, and 1844, as a Whig) before dying as the '''[[UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar Civil War]]''' approached. Basically, he lived through four party changes, and when he died the Whig party pretty much fell apart. Calhoun didn't live as long, but was ''John Quincy Adams' '' Vice-President, and then went onto a very long political career that ''involved practically getting the South to secede from the United States in 1850.'' They may not have lived to be 600 years old, but Clay and Calhoun are mention more often in the AP US History book than George Washington, Lincoln, FDR, or pretty much any president. Clay, in fact, is mentioned in one book starting about page 200 and then dies on page '''five-hundred six'''.

** WordOfGod says that the average life expectance for a British wizard or witch(or presumably [[MuggleBornOfMages squib]]) is 134.75

** Ron's Auntie Muriel, who in spite being younger than Dumbledore, Marchbanks

** And if you think Armando Dippet was old, the oldest wizard on record, Barry Wee Willie Winkle, celebrated his ''755th'' birthday on August 14, 1991. He invited every witch and wizard he'd ever known, for a total for about 30 million! Ironically, he's actually lived longer than Nicholas Flamel([[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot who is known to exist by never makes an appearance]]) the legendary alchemist who invented the Elixir of Immortality!

* The original ''{{Redwall}}'' book actually ''had'' a very old character named Methuselah, who was killed about midway into the book. Also, it's noted that badgers, especially Badger Lords, can live four times longer than the other species - most of Mossflower's creatures measure time in "seasons", so evidently Mossflower's badgers age at the same rate as real-life humans.
* Humans in the BibleTimes era of ManyWaters age incredibly slowly, reaching adulthood around 100.

** [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Elizabeth II]] is also a prime example; should she live and reign until 10 September 2015, she will take both the British longest-reign title and the longest-reign title for women from her great-great-grandmother.

* This trope may apply to a star. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HD_140283 Star HD 140283]] appears to have been around ''since the very beginning of the universe!''

* In ''MagicTheGathering'', people of the plane of ''Ravnica'' have significantly longer life spans; Argus Kos of the Boros is well over a century old, and still an active law enforcement agent.

* In Warhammer40K, [[SpaceMarine Space Marines]] are known for their longevity, routinely living for centuries (provided they don't die in battle). Those greviously wounded in battle may be ensconced in Dreadnaught armor, which renders them functionally immortal ([[AndIMustScream for a price]]).
** As well, baseline humans can receive medical rejuvenation treatment that can extend their lives well into the triple digits. For example- at the time of ''Cain's Last Stand'', Literature/CiaphasCain is is well over one hundred (as is his aid, Gunner Jurgen). Generally however, the treatments that allow this sort of long life are reserved for the rich and the well-off.

* In ''MagicTheGathering'', people of the plane of ''Ravnica'' have significantly longer life spans; the main character is well over a century old, and still an active law enforcement agent.
** This may be because Ravnican years are shorter than Earth years; after all, the Guildpact has been around for ''[[SciFiWritersHaveNoSenseOfScale ten thousand years]]''.
** Also, while he's over a century old, he does think every so often that a hundred is too old for law enforcement work, has a few problems with his age, and it doesn't help that he's been overusing magical health packs for a while.

[[folder:Mythology, Religion and Folklore]]
* A staple of MesopotamianMythology. The first two dozen or so kings in the Sumerian King list have reigns that last anywhere between 100 and 43,200 years - the record being held by King En-men-lu-ana of Bad-tibira. Nobody seems to have had a normal-lasting reign until after [[Literature/TheEpicOfGilgamesh Gilgamesh]].

* [[GreekMythology Odysseus]]'s dog, said to have survived more than 20 years while sleeping on a dunghill in an era without veterinary care, is a non-human example.

* {{Merlin}}, in most versions of the KingArthur mythos. Usually a JustifiedTrope in that Merlin is often the son of a virgin and an immortal demon, and a [[WizardsLiveLonger magician]].

** Another important thing to note is that some versions of the Bible claim that God one day decided that humans lived WAY too long, and decreed that they would live no more than 120 years from that day forward(note that considering the world record for longest life is 121, this has been disproven) long before the Great Flood.

** Dumbledore who was no less than ''115'' when he died. In the sixth book he says that he does not expect to live to the end of the year, but this is only because of a cursed ring he foolishly tried to wear.

** And if you think Armando Dippet was old, the oldest wizard on record, Barry Wee Willie Winkle, celebrated his ''755th'' birthday on August 14, 1991. He invited every witch and wizard he'd ever known, for a total for about 30 million!

* {{Merlin}}, in most versions of the KingArthur mythos.

* In KoreanMythology, Dangun (legendary king and forefather of the Korean People) lived for staggering ''one thousand and thirty-eight years(the time varies for each record, but still over one thousand years)'', before becoming Sanshinryeong (god of the mountain). He is still being worshipped by Korean shamans, even to this day.

* Cinderella in ''TheTenthKingdom'' is a highly amusing parody of this trope. As one of the Five Women Who Changed History (and the only one still living), she is over 200 years old, yet looks only middle-aged and still quite beautiful due to 'magic surgery.' However, this does not extend beyond the surface--not only does she hack, cough, and nearly pass out from the various ailments she suffers from, but during her dance with the Dog Prince, her bones audibly creak and she ends up stuck bent over backward, needing help upright again.

* In ''DungeonsAndDragons'', high-level monks, druids, and some other classes have an ability called "timeless body". While it doesn't lengthen their lifespans, it does render them immune to aging penalties (bonuses still accrue) all the way up to the moment of a death by natural causes.