Manoel Angelim Dino and Maria de Sousa Dino, a Brazilian couple, have achieved a new Guinness World Record for the longest married surviving marriage. They have been married for 84 years and 77 days. Their love journey began in 1936, when they met for the first time, and ended four years later, in 1940, when they married in a chapel in Ceará, Brazil. Since then, they've made a lovely life together, raising 13 children and growing a large family that currently includes 55 grandchildren, 54 great-grandchildren, and 12 great-great-grandchildren.
LongeviQuest, a group that tracks the lives of centenarians, documented the couple's inspirational trip on Instagram. They confessed that Manoel fell in love with Maria at first sight, but her family originally rejected their relationship. Manoel was determined to be with Maria, so he took the initiative to build a home for them, eventually obtaining her family's consent. Maria believes the sole "secret" to their long and happy marriage is love.
Their path together was not without challenges. Manoel and Maria supported their growing family by selling rolled tobacco throughout their first few years of marriage. Despite the hardships, they supplied for their children and maintained a stable home. Their perseverance and strong friendship helped them deal with life's ups and downs.
Manoel and Maria, both over 100 years old, live peacefully and quietly. Manoel spends much of the day resting due to his age, but every evening at 6 p.m., he joins Maria in listening to the rosary prayer on the radio, followed by a televised mass. Their love and commitment to one another are as strong as ever, demonstrating that real love can withstand the passage of time.
While Manoel and Maria have the record for the longest-living marriage and set a new Guinness World Record, the longest marriage ever recorded between opposite sexes was that of David Jacob Hiller (b. 1789) and Sarah Davy Hiller (b. 1792), who were married for an astounding 88 years and 349 days until Sarah died in 1898.
Previously, Herbert Fisher (USA, b. 1905) and Zelmyra Fisher (USA, b. 1907) had the record for the longest marriage, having been married for 86 years and 290 days before Herbert's death on February 27, 2011.