More Scots than ever clocking up a century
FORGET the baby-boomers – centenarians are Scotland’s fastest-growing age group.
The number of Scots aged 100 and older is now estimated to be 720, compared with just 570 in 2002.
And around 30 of them are thought to be 105 or older.
The figures were published by the Registrar General for Scotland, Duncan Macniven, who said: “This is one example of the ageing of Scotland’s population.
“Almost nine out of every 10 centenarians are women but the proportion of men is slowly increasing.” The findings came after the death of one of the oldest people in Scotland.
Elizabeth Cockburn died in Aberdeenshire on Sunday aged 108.
Bob Taggart, 109, the oldest man in Scotland last year, said that the tunes of Engelbert Humperdinck spiced up his life. “Even around the house, I would love to sing his songs,” he said. “It helped to keep me young.”
A century ago, it was rare for Scots to pass this milestone, with only 10 reaching their 100th year in 1899.
The number in the next age group down – those aged 90 to 99 – has fallen for the second year in a row.
This can be traced back to fewer babies being born during the First World War.
The loss of nearly an entire generation of men during the war accounts for the fact that nine out of 10 centenarians are women.