A life spanning centuries: Saudi Arabia’s oldest man dies at 142

A life spanning centuries: Saudi Arabia’s oldest man dies at 142

• Al Wadaei reportedly married at 110 and had 134 children and grandchildren
• He performed Hajj over 40 times, showing deep religious devotion
• Over 7,000 attended his Dhahran Al Janoub funeral, showing community respect.

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He was born in the Dhahran Al Janoub region and lived through the rule of several kings, starting from King Abdulaziz, who founded the Kingdom, all the way to the present reign of King Salman. Over his lifetime, he saw roads replace sand tracks, small towns turn into cities, and a largely traditional society become part of the global economy.

Those who knew him say religion and family were always at the centre of his life. Relatives described him as deeply devoted to his faith, and they often spoke about his commitment to pilgrimage. According to his family, he travelled to Mecca for Hajj more than 40 times, something most people would struggle to do even once or twice in their lives. For them, this was not just a number, but a reflection of how important faith remained to him, even in extreme old age.

Al Wadaei’s personal life was just as remarkable. Reports indicate he married for the last time at the age of 110 and later had a daughter. By the time of his death, he had an extensive family that included 134 children and grandchildren, a living legacy stretching across generations.

Funeral prayers were held in Dhahran Al Janoub, in the southern part of Saudi Arabia, where more than 7,000 people gathered to pay their respects before he was laid to rest in his home village of Al Rashid. The large turnout reflected not only the size of his extended family but the respect he commanded in his community.

As word got around that he had died, people across Saudi Arabia began posting about him almost right away. Many did not talk about him only as someone who lived a very long time, but as a man who seemed to come from another age, someone who had seen things most people today only know through stories told by elders.

His death closed the chapter on a life that stretched far beyond what most people can imagine. Of course, whenever someone is said to have lived that long, there will always be doubts. Still, the reaction online and the number of people who spoke about him showed how much his story mattered. To many, he was proof that history is not just something you read about. Sometimes it is carried by real people who have lived through it and passed those memories on.