Portrait of Maria Goretti

Birthday profile

Maria Goretti

Maria Goretti, Italian martyr and saint (died 1902)

Born
October 16, 1890
Died
July 6, 1902
Zodiac sign
Libra
Birth year
1890

About Maria Goretti

Maria Teresa Goretti (Italian: [maˈriːa teˈrɛːza ɡoˈretti]; 16 October 1890 – 6 July 1902) was an Italian virgin martyr of the Catholic Church, and one of the youngest saints to be canonized. She was born to a farming family. Her father died when she was nine, and the family had to share a house with another family, the Serenellis. She took over household duties while her mother and siblings worked in the fields. One afternoon, Alessandro, the Serenellis' 20-year-old son, made sexual advances to her. When she refused to submit to him, he stabbed her 14 times. She was taken to the hospital but she died while forgiving him. He was arrested, convicted, and jailed. During imprisonment, he repented. After 27 years, he was released from prison and visited her mother to beg forgiveness, which she granted. He later became a lay brother in a Capuchin monastery and died in 1970. Maria was beatified in 1947 and canonized in 1950. She is especially venerated in the Congregation of the Passion (Passionists). Maria Teresa Goretti (Italian:; 16 October 1890 – 6 July 1902) was an Italian virgin martyr of the Catholic Church, and one of the youngest saints to be canonized. She looked at him and said "Well, who knows, which of us is going to be there first?" When the pharmacist replied that she would be first, Maria told him that she would "gladly" think of him. It was awarded a prize at the 10th International Exhibition of Cinema Art at Venice in 1949, as the one which contributed most to the spiritual and moral betterment of mankind.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Maria Goretti timeline

  1. Maria Teresa Goretti (Italian:; 16 October 1890 – 6 July 1902) was an Italian virgin martyr of the Catholic Church, and one of the youngest saints to be canonized.
  2. It was awarded a prize at the 10th International Exhibition of Cinema Art at Venice in 1949, as the one which contributed most to the spiritual and moral betterment of mankind.

The world when Maria Goretti was born

Maria Goretti was born in 1890. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Headlines and milestones

  • Top headlineWounded Knee Massacre — last major conflict with Native Americans
  • Technology milestoneElectric chair used for first execution
  • Notable inventionElectric chair
  • World population~1.5B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderBenjamin Harrison
  • U.S. population63.0M

1890 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Maria Goretti's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure18902026
Postage stamp$0.02$0.73
Population63.0M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.