https://longeviquest.com/2026/01/ilmari-koppinen-finlands-oldest-man-turns-108/

Ilmari Koppinen, Finland’s Oldest Man, Turns 108

Yrjö Ilmari Koppinen, the oldest living man in Finland, is celebrating his 108th birthday today in Salo, Southwest Finland, according to Iltalehti.

Ilmari Koppinen was born in Rauma, Satakunta, Finland, on 8 January 1918, a month following the Finnish Declaration of Independence. He was completely orphaned by the age of 12. His mother, a primary school teacher, died when Ilmari was just six, and his father, a mathematics lecturer, passed away six years later. He later said that this period of hardship left him destitute but helped forge a strong character—one from which he continued to draw strength throughout his life.

He lived with several foster families, spending periods in Ylivieska, before eventually returning to Rauma. In Rauma, he joined the Scouts, which became a second home to him. He graduated from Rauma Lyceum in 1938.

Soon afterward, World War II began, and he was called to serve. Koppinen served in various roles, including as a sailor aboard the battleship Ilmarinen, an instructor at Suomenlinna, and a long-range patrolman in the Soroka region and on Lake Rukajärvi. After the war, Koppinen built a career in the surveying field, working among other positions as an assistant professor in the Department of Surveying at the Helsinki University of Technology.

He met his wife, Esteri Ruonakoski, during the Continuation War. At the time, Koppinen was assigned to training duties at the Oulu barracks, from where he was occasionally sent to Liminka, Esteri’s hometown at the time. The couple married during the war in 1943, and their first child, Ilpo, was born the following year, in 1944.

Following the passing of Esko Penttinen (24 October 1917 – 15 March 2025), he became the oldest living man in Finland.