Have you ever wondered who the youngest grandmother in the world is? Maybe not, but when you see the news you’ll be curious.

The youngest known grandmother is called Rifca Stanescu , a Romanian gypsy who in 2009 officially became the youngest grandmother, after her daughter Maria gave birth at the young age of… 11.

Will the youngest grandmother also become the youngest great-grandmother?

The amazing thing about this family doesn’t end here. Because in addition to having been mothers at the young age of 12 and 11 respectively, Rifca and her daughter Maria have stated that the newborn would already be engaged to an 8-year-old girl, so it seems that the habit of fathering children at a young age could be maintained with the newborn Ion.

The extraordinary news was published at the time by newspapers such as The Sun and Daily Mail . The history of this peculiar family has been the subject of comment and controversy, since the youth of mother and daughter has aroused great controversy . Grandmother Rifca was born in 1985 and, at only eleven years of age, went to live with her boyfriend of 13 years of age, named Ionel, who, despite being only a pre-adolescent, was already selling jewellery in street markets. In a short time of living together, Rifca became pregnant. The couple, according to the grandmother, would have run away to live outside because her parents wanted Rifca to marry another young man. In fact, Rifca would have been engaged from the age of two, in a usual pact between Romanian Roma families.

Half-hearted joy at the good news

Her statements to the English newspaper The Sun have made it clear that Grandma has mixed feelings. Rifca acknowledges feeling joy and emotion for the recent motherhood of her daughter, although “I also feel a little sad because I wished my daughter had had a different childhood and adolescence than I did”. Rifca’s wish was for her daughter to continue studying, but it seems that this will be difficult.

Gypsy culture, its uses and customs

Virginity is one of the imperatives that any gypsy woman must fulfill before contracting marriage . Marriage covenants between families are broken if there is evidence that a bride has not maintained her chastity. This is one of the factors that explains the surprising precocity of many Romany couples.

More cases of shocking precocity

Although unlikely, Rifca and Maria’s case is not unique, especially compared to other mothers who gave birth at an even younger age. A Peruvian girl named Lina Medina was the youngest mother on record, at the age of five years and seven months . Is this medically possible? It is a rarity, but the news is completely true.

As an exercise in science fiction, it can be said that if Lina Medina’s descendants had followed in her footsteps and emulated her precociousness to have children (which fortunately did not happen), Lina, who is now 80 years old, would live with some fourteen generations of her descendants. Seeing is believing.

What do you think of these cases?

We want to ask you: what do you think about these cases of precocity? You can comment your thoughts and reflections on the case of Rifca Stanescu and Lina Medina in the comments section.