Robert De Niro had a baby at 79 but the world’s oldest confirmed father was NINETY-TWO
Robert De Niro announced this week that he has welcomed his seventh child at the age of 79.
The Oscar winner has not revealed his child’s name or gender, nor shared the identity of the baby’s mother.
But the Godfather actor is not the oldest man to become a father.
Despite the average age of a father being 33 in the UK and 30 in the US, the oldest father confirmed by records was 92.
While there is no maximum age for a man to become a father, it does carry some health risks, including the risk of preterm birth and low birth weight.
Here MailOnline reveals the oldest fathers in history.
Robert De Niro announced earlier this week that he has welcomed his seventh child at the age of 79
James E Smith
The oldest father ever could be over 100 years old.
James E. Smith was a pastor from Illinois. He claimed to have had a child in the US in January 1951 with his wife Anna Smith, 38, at the age of 101 and 10 months.
But his age is heavily disputed.
Although he claimed to have been born in 1849, other records suggest he may have been 15 years younger.
James E. Smith was a pastor from Illinois. He claimed to have had a child in the US in January 1951 with his wife Anna Smith, 38, at the age of 101 and 10 months. here he is pictured with his wife and children on his 103rd birthday
That’s according to a Southern Illinois newspaper article on April 8, 1959, which suggests previous marriage records and his application for a burial permit would make him about 86 years old and 10 months old.
This is still more than 30 years older than the average age of a father.
Ramjit Raghav
The second oldest man to father a child is Ramjit Raghav of India.
He was awarded the title in 2010 when he gave birth to his first born son Karamjit at the age of 94.
But then, in September 2012, at the age of 96, the pensioner and his wife Shakuntala, who was 54, welcomed another son Ranjit.
Mr Raghav, who has been a farmer all his life, said after the birth of his second son that it was ‘God’s wish. He wanted me to have another son.’
However, there are no official records proving that he was a father at the age of 96.
Ramjit Raghav pictured at the age of 96, with his wife Shankuntala, 54, and sons Karamjit, 4, and newborn Ranjit
Les Colley
The oldest confirmed father in the world is said to be Les Colley from Australia.
This is according to the Guinness World Records.
The retiree had his ninth child, a son named Oswald, to his third wife at the age of 92 years and 10 months.
He met Oswald’s Fijian mother in 1991 through a dating agency, when he was 90.
Mr. Colley led a healthy and active life and died of pneumonia in 1998, just four months before turning 100.
Australia’s Les Colley became father to his ninth child at age 92 in 1991, pictured left, and Mahmoud al-Adam became a proud father to his 13th child at age 92 in 2017, pictured right
Mahmoud al-Adam
The second oldest father according to data is Mahmoud al-Adam, who became the proud father of his 13th child at the age of 92.
In 2017, the retiree from the West Bank city of Hebron in Israel and his wife, 42-year-old Abeer, named their baby Tamara, according to the Times of Israel.
The newspaper reported that Abeer, who is deaf, married Abeer after his first wife passed away.
Julio Iglesias Sr.
The father of veteran crooner and heartthrob Julio Iglesias suffered a fatal heart attack in 2005.
But just five days before his death, it was revealed that Julio Iglesias would become a father for the second time at the impressive age of 90.
Spanish doctor Julio Iglesias Puga (d. December 2005), father of famous singer Julio Iglesias and his wife Ronna Keitt who walked in Peniscola in 2002, on the left, and singer Julio Iglesias next to his sons Enrique and Julio Jose in Hawaii on the right photo
Dr. Iglesias was a gynecologist and his American wife Ronna Keith was 42 and was carrying the couple’s child when he died in a hospital near his home in Madrid, the Telegraph says.
The 90-year-old father had a legendary reputation as a womanizer and was nicknamed Papuchi, which means little daddy in Spanish, the newspaper said.
Not only was he the father of singer Julio Iglesias, he is also the grandfather of signers Enrique Iglesias, Julio Iglesias Jr. and Chabeli Iglesias.
Bernie Ecclestone pictured at 91 with baby Ace at 21 months behind the wheel of a car at Interlagos Circuit
Bernie Ecclestone
The ex-Formula 1 mogul, Bernie Ecclestone, was 89 when he had his fourth child, Ace, in 2020.
This was the billionaire’s first child with Fabiana Flosi, who was 44 when she gave birth.
The racing magnate previously had children in 1955, 1984 and 1988, daughters Tamara, 38, Petra, 34, and Deborah, 68 from previous marriages.
Deborah was born to his first wife Ivy Bamford before welcoming socialites Tamara and Petra with his second wife Slavica Radić.
Speaking about being a father in 2022, he told the Sun: “Now I have more time on my hands and I hope I can spend it with my son when he grows up. I don’t know if we will stop here. Maybe he should have a little brother or sister.’