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{{about|a tortoise|the philosophy and religious practice|Advaita Vedanta|the GTK computer desktop theme called 'Adwaita'|GNOME}}
{{Short description|Aldabra giant tortoise (c. 1750 – 2006)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2018}}
{{about|a tortoise|the philosophy and religious practice|Advaita Vedanta|the design language used in the GNOME desktop environment|Adwaita (design language)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2018}}
{{Infobox animal
{{Infobox animal
| name                   = Adwaita
| name = Adwaita
| image_upright           =  
| image_upright =  
| image                   =  
| image =  
| caption                 =  
| caption =  
| species                 = [[Aldabra giant tortoise]]
| species = [[Aldabra giant tortoise]]
| gender                 = Male
| gender = Male
| hatch_date             = {{Circa|1750}}
| hatch_date = {{Circa}} 1750–1826
| hatch_place             = [[Aldabra]] Atoll, [[Seychelles]]
| hatch_place = [[Aldabra]] Atoll
| death_date             = {{Death date|df=yes|2006|3|22}} (aged 255)
| death_date = {{Death date|df=yes|2006|3|22}} Aged 180–255
| death_place           = [[Alipore Zoological Gardens]], [[Kolkata]], [[India]]
| death_place = [[Alipore Zoological Gardens]], [[Kolkata]], India
| resting_place          =
| weight = 250 kg
| resting_place_coordinates =
| known                  =  Believed to be the oldest terrestrial animal in the world, if verified.
| residence              =
| parents                =
| children                =
| weight                 = 250 kg
| height                  =
| appearance              =
| namedafter              =
}}
}}
[[File:Seychellen-Riesenschildkroete Aldabrachelys gigantea Tierpark Hellabrunn-6.jpg|An [[Aldabra giant tortoise]], the same species as Adwaita was|thumb|right]]
'''Adwaita''' (meaning "one and only" in [[Sanskrit language|Sanskrit]]) (c. 1750 – 22 March 2006), also spelled '''Addwaita''', was a male [[Aldabra giant tortoise]] that lived in the [[Alipore Zoological Gardens]] of [[Kolkata]], [[India]]. At the time of his death in 2006, Adwaita was believed to be amongst the [[List of longest-living organisms|longest-living animals]] in the world.


He may have been from [[Aldabra]], an atoll in the [[Seychelles]]. This anecdotal report has not been confirmed.<ref name=EOL2014>{{cite web|author=Encyclopedia of Life|title=Aldabra Tortoise (Geochelone gigantean)|work=Encyclopedia of Life|year=2014|url=http://eol.org/pages/795005/details|access-date=2014-01-28}}</ref> The animal was one of four tortoises that lived at [[Robert Clive]]'s estate at [[Barrackpore]], in the northern suburbs of Calcutta.<ref name=BBC4837988>{{cite news|author=BBC News – South Asia|title='Clive of India's' tortoise dies|newspaper=BBC News|publisher=[[BBC Online]]|date=2006-03-23|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4837988.stm|access-date=2014-01-23}}</ref> Clive was said to have received the tortoises following his victory at the [[Battle of Plassey]] in 1757, in which the [[East India Company|British East India Company]] defeated the [[Nawabs of Bengal and Murshidabad|Nawab of Bengal]] and his French allies, thereby securing India for Britain in the long run.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Lal|first=Vinay|date=April 2006|title=Clive and his Pet Tortoise|url=http://southasia.ucla.edu/history-politics/british-india/clive-pet-tortoise/|access-date=2020-06-16|website=MANAS, UCLA Social Sciences|language=en-US}}</ref> Adwaita was transferred to the [[Zoological Garden, Alipore|Alipore Zoo]] in [[Kolkata|Calcutta]] in 1875 or 1876 by [[Carl Louis Schwendler]], the founder of the zoo.<ref name=PASB1876>{{cite journal|title=Zoological Garden|journal=Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal|pages=23–24|date=February 1876|url=https://archive.org/stream/proceedingsofasi1876asia#page/n35/mode/2up}}</ref> Adwaita lived in his enclosure in the zoo until his death on 22 March 2006 at an estimated age of 255.
'''Adwaita''' (from {{Lang|sa|अद्वैत}}, meaning "one and only" in [[Sanskrit language|Sanskrit]]) ({{circa|1750}} – 22 March 2006), also spelled '''Adwaitya'''<ref>{{cite news |title=Calcutta's oldest resident dies |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/calcutta-s-oldest-resident-dies/cid/816177 |access-date=25 November 2024 |work=[[The Telegraph (India)|The Telegraph]] |date=22 March 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=World Briefing {{!}} Asia: India: Tortoise That Saw The Rise And The Fall Of The British Empire Dies |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/24/world/world-briefing-asia-india-tortoise-that-saw-the-rise-and-the-fall-of.html |access-date=25 November 2024 |work=[[The New York Times]] |agency=Reuters |date=24 March 2006}}</ref> or '''Addwaita''',<ref>{{cite news |title=Addwaita, a tortoise of great renown |url=https://www.namibian.com.na/addwaita-a-tortoise-of-great-renown/ |access-date=25 November 2024 |work=[[The Namibian]] |date=3 April 2006}}</ref> was a male [[Aldabra giant tortoise]] that lived in the [[Alipore Zoological Gardens]] of [[Kolkata]], India. At the time of his death in 2006, Adwaita was believed to be amongst the [[List of longest-living organisms|longest-living animals]] in the world.
 
The animal is claimed to have been one of four tortoises that lived at [[Robert Clive]]'s estate at [[Barrackpore]], in the northern suburbs of Calcutta.<ref name=BBC4837988>{{cite news|title='Clive of India's' tortoise dies|newspaper=BBC News|publisher=[[BBC Online]]|date=23 March 2006|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4837988.stm|access-date=23 January 2014}}</ref> Clive was said to have received the tortoises following his victory at the [[Battle of Plassey]] in 1757,<ref name="Lal2006">{{Cite web|last=Lal|first=Vinay|date=April 2006|title=Clive and his Pet Tortoise|url=http://southasia.ucla.edu/history-politics/british-india/clive-pet-tortoise/|access-date=16 June 2020|website=MANAS, UCLA Social Sciences|language=en-US}}</ref> although this story is unsubstantiated.
 
Adwaita was transferred to the [[Zoological Garden, Alipore|Alipore Zoo]] in [[Kolkata|Calcutta]] in 1875 or 1876 by [[Carl Louis Schwendler]], the founder of the zoo.<ref name="PASB1876">{{cite journal|title=Zoological Garden|journal=Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal|pages=23–24|date=February 1876|url=https://archive.org/stream/proceedingsofasi1876asia#page/n35/mode/2up}}</ref> Adwaita lived in his enclosure in the zoo until his death on 22 March 2006 at an estimated age of 255.


==Description==
==Description==
Weighing 250&nbsp;kg (551&nbsp;lb), Adwaita was a solitary animal with no records of his progeny. He lived on a diet of wheat [[bran]], carrots, lettuce, soaked gram ([[chickpea]]), bread, grass and salt.{{Citation needed|date=September 2018}}
Weighing 250&nbsp;kg (551&nbsp;lb), Adwaita was a solitary animal with no records of his progeny. He lived on a diet of wheat [[bran]], carrots, lettuce, soaked gram ([[chickpea]]), bread, grass and salt.<ref name="Lal2006" />


==Age==
==Age==
His shell cracked in late 2005, and a wound developed in the flesh underneath the crack. The wound became infected and eventually led to his death from [[liver failure]] on 22 March 2006. Adwaita is estimated to have been at least 150 years old at the time of his death,<ref name=BBC4837988/> and some estimates suggest he may have reached 255 years.<ref name=BBC4837988/> If this latter estimate can be confirmed, Adwaita will have been the oldest known tortoise of modern times, living longer than [[Harriet (tortoise)|Harriet]] by 80 years and [[Tu'i Malila]] by 67 years.{{Citation needed|date=September 2018}}
His shell cracked in late 2005, and a wound developed in the flesh underneath the crack. The wound became infected and eventually led to his death from liver failure on 22 March 2006. Adwaita is claimed to have been 255 years old at the time of his death, although this claim is unsubstantiated.<ref name=BBC4837988/> If Adwaita's claimed age were true, he would be the oldest known tortoise, outliving  [[Harriet (tortoise)|Harriet]] by 80 years, [[Tu'i Malila]] by 67 years, and making him 63 years older than the current record holder [[Jonathan (tortoise)|Jonathan]].{{cn|date=December 2025}}
 
== See also ==
*[[Tu'i Malila]]
*[[Jonathan (tortoise)|Jonathan]]
*[[List of longest-living organisms]]


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
*{{cite web |title=Kolkata toasts 255-year-old resident |url=http://headlines.sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=13735319&headline=Kolkata~toasts~255-year-old~resident |website=Sify.com |access-date=12 January 2019 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060427025103/http://headlines.sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=13735319&headline=Kolkata~toasts~255-year-old~resident |archive-date=27 April 2006}}
*{{cite web |title=Kolkata toasts 255-year-old resident |url=http://headlines.sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=13735319&headline=Kolkata~toasts~255-year-old~resident |website=[[Sify]] |access-date=12 January 2019 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060427025103/http://headlines.sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=13735319&headline=Kolkata~toasts~255-year-old~resident |archive-date=27 April 2006}}
*{{Cite news |title=Worlds Oldest Animals |publication-date= 2015-06-29 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJjrtn7bf4o?id=13735319}}
*{{Cite news |title=Worlds Oldest Animals |publication-date= 29 June 2015 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJjrtn7bf4o?id=13735319 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211222/lJjrtn7bf4o |archive-date=2021-12-22 |url-status=live}}{{cbignore}}


{{Named turtles}}
{{Named turtles}}
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[[Category:Individual tortoises]]
[[Category:Individual tortoises]]
[[Category:Individual animals in India]]
[[Category:Individual animals in India]]
[[Category:Deaths from liver failure]]

Latest revision as of 14:04, 27 March 2026


Template:Infobox animal

Adwaita (from अद्वैत, meaning "one and only" in Sanskrit) (c. 1750 – 22 March 2006), also spelled Adwaitya[1][2] or Addwaita,[3] was a male Aldabra giant tortoise that lived in the Alipore Zoological Gardens of Kolkata, India. At the time of his death in 2006, Adwaita was believed to be amongst the longest-living animals in the world.

The animal is claimed to have been one of four tortoises that lived at Robert Clive's estate at Barrackpore, in the northern suburbs of Calcutta.[4] Clive was said to have received the tortoises following his victory at the Battle of Plassey in 1757,[5] although this story is unsubstantiated.

Adwaita was transferred to the Alipore Zoo in Calcutta in 1875 or 1876 by Carl Louis Schwendler, the founder of the zoo.[6] Adwaita lived in his enclosure in the zoo until his death on 22 March 2006 at an estimated age of 255.

Description[edit | edit source]

Weighing 250 kg (551 lb), Adwaita was a solitary animal with no records of his progeny. He lived on a diet of wheat bran, carrots, lettuce, soaked gram (chickpea), bread, grass and salt.[5]

Age[edit | edit source]

His shell cracked in late 2005, and a wound developed in the flesh underneath the crack. The wound became infected and eventually led to his death from liver failure on 22 March 2006. Adwaita is claimed to have been 255 years old at the time of his death, although this claim is unsubstantiated.[4] If Adwaita's claimed age were true, he would be the oldest known tortoise, outliving Harriet by 80 years, Tu'i Malila by 67 years, and making him 63 years older than the current record holder Jonathan.[citation needed]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. "Calcutta's oldest resident dies". The Telegraph. 22 March 2006. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  2. "World Briefing | Asia: India: Tortoise That Saw The Rise And The Fall Of The British Empire Dies". The New York Times. Reuters. 24 March 2006. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  3. "Addwaita, a tortoise of great renown". The Namibian. 3 April 2006. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  4. 4.0 4.1 "'Clive of India's' tortoise dies". BBC News. BBC Online. 23 March 2006. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Lal, Vinay (April 2006). "Clive and his Pet Tortoise". MANAS, UCLA Social Sciences. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  6. "Zoological Garden". Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal: 23–24. February 1876.

External links[edit | edit source]

Template:Named turtles