The myth of Caucasian longevity is a striking notion that took root in the 20th century amid widespread confusion about demographic aging in the former Soviet Union. It involved remarks from a geriatrician and neurologist who led the gerontology department at MOIP and who spoke with a Moscow audience connected to a university platform. MV Lomonosov Valery Novoselov is cited in association with these discussions.
There were claims that three regions in the USSR stood out for extraordinary lifespans: Abkhazia, Azerbaijan, and Yakutia. Supposed residents were said to have lived well beyond 120 years, with specific examples such as Majid Agayev at 143 years, Mahmud Eyvazov at 151 years, and Serali Muslimov at 168 years. In reality, Novoselov explains, these cases illustrate not genuine longevity but examples of unusually successful aging that were later misinterpreted as century-spanning lifespans. The ages cited were likely not accurate reflections of actual birth dates or life spans.
Novoselov notes that many individuals were born during periods when birth registration was inconsistent and records of military service in the region were not reliably kept. Without verifiable documents, determining exact ages proved impossible. Over time, the lack of precise data allowed embellishment, creating a descriptive trend rather than a factual record of ages reached by residents of those areas.
As the narrative spread, some people began to equate age with reverence. The tradition of honoring long life sometimes encouraged people to claim greater ages than they actually possessed. The wartime era particularly amplified this tendency, as some men exaggerated their ages to join or avoid conscription, while postwar couples and families sometimes recounted longer lifespans to emphasize enduring lineage. Novoselov cites these patterns as explanations for the persistence of inflated age reports across generations.
Another important factor is the gender distribution among reported centenarians. Historical records consistently show a preponderance of men among those claimed to be exceptionally old, including so-called supercentenarians exceeding 120 years. This gender imbalance casts further doubt on the reliability of these claims, since many studies on longevity note that women generally outlive men in most populations, making a male-dominated record of extreme ages less plausible as a real demographic phenomenon. The overall impression, therefore, is that the Caucasus region did not host a widely credible cradle of extreme longevity. The pattern appears more as a cultural narrative and a historical curiosity than as a scientifically documented reality. (attribution: Novoselov)