Emilio Palma

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Palma and the second or maternal family name is Morella.
Emilio Marcos Palma
Born
Emilio Marcos de Palma

(1978-01-07) 7 January 1978
Esperanza Base,
Trinity Peninsula, Antarctica[a]
CitizenshipArgentine
Known forBeing the first human born on the Antarctic mainland
Relatives
  • Jorge Emilio Palma (father)
  • Silvia Morella de Palma (mother)

Emilio Marcos de Palma Morella (born 7 January 1978) is an Argentine man who was the first person born on the continent Antarctica.[1][2] The first person to be conceived in the continent was Juan Pablo Camacho.[3]

Biography

Palma was born in Fortín Sargento Cabral at the Esperanza Base, near the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, and weighed 3.4 kg (7 lb 8 oz). His father, Captain Jorge Emilio Palma, was head of the Argentine Army detachment at the base.[4]

In late 1977, Silvia Morella de Palma, who was then seven months pregnant, was airlifted to Esperanza Base, in order to complete her pregnancy in the base.[5] Emilio Palma was born in 7 January 1978 and baptized at the Chapel of St. Francis of Assisi on the base.[6]

He is featured in the Guinness Book of Records as the first person born on the continent.[7]

Citizenship

Since the area in which Emilio Palma was born is also part of the British Antarctic Territory (BAT), he holds British citizenship as well as Argentine.[8] Full British citizenship was available to a person born in the territory before 1983. Since 1983, any person born in a British Overseas Territory would only have British Overseas Territories citizenship (BOTC) available to them.[9]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ This area was and is still disputed between the Argentine Antarctic Territory, British Antarctic Territory and Chilean Antarctic Territory.

References

  1. ^ Alexander Kumar; Sophie Duong (2012). "Surviving on the Edge: Medicine in Antarctica" (PDF). Issues (100). Control Publications: 24. ISSN 0819-8101.
  2. ^ Frye, Ellen C. (2022). "8 - The ant-architecture of religion and spirituality in Antarctica". In Kelman, Ilan (ed.). Antarcticness - Inspirations and imaginaries (PDF). Google Scholar: UCL Press. p. 119. ISBN 978-1-80008-146-8.
  3. ^ Camilo Bravo (25 November 2014). "Chile en la Antártica: a treinta años del primer chileno nacido en el fin del mundo". 24 Horas (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 January 2026.
  4. ^ "Life found under S Pole ice shelf". The Times. 10 January 1978.
  5. ^ "Born Freezing: Meet Antarctica's First Citizen". WebEcoist. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  6. ^ "Chapel of San Francisco de Asís. Base Esperanza (WAP ARG-Ø4)". Worldwide Antarctic Program. 2018-04-21. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
  7. ^ McWhirter, Norris (1986). 1986 Guinness book of world records. Internet Archive. Toronto ; New York : Bantam Books. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-553-25454-9.
  8. ^ "British Antarctic Territory", Wikipedia, 2026-02-24, retrieved 2026-03-09
  9. ^ British Nationality Act 1981, s.1, s.15 & s.50
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