Claim: Mother Teresa spent her life in Asia.

Mother Teresa , known in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta -LRB- born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu ; -LSB- aˈɲɛzə ˈɡɔndʒɛ bɔjaˈdʒiu -RSB- ; 26 August 1910 -- 5 September 1997 -RRB- , was an Albanian-Indian Roman Catholic nun and missionary . She was born in Skopje -LRB- now the capital of the Republic of Macedonia -RRB- , then part of the Kosovo Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire . After living in Macedonia for eighteen years she moved to Ireland and then to India , where she lived for most of her life .   In 1950 Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity , a Roman Catholic religious congregation which had over 4,500 sisters and was active in 133 countries in 2012 . The congregation manages homes for people dying of HIV/AIDS , leprosy and tuberculosis ; soup kitchens ; dispensaries and mobile clinics ; children 's - and family-counselling programmes ; orphanages , and schools . Members , who take vows of chastity , poverty , and obedience , also profess a fourth vow : to give `` wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor '' .   Teresa received a number of honours , including the 1962 Ramon Magsaysay Peace Prize and 1979 Nobel Peace Prize . She was canonised -LRB- recognised by the church as a saint -RRB- on 4 September 2016 , and the anniversary of her death -LRB- 5 September -RRB- is her feast day .   A controversial figure during her life and after her death , Teresa was admired by many for her charitable work . She was praised and criticised for her opposition to abortion , and criticised for poor conditions in her houses for the dying . Her authorised biography was written by Navin Chawla and published in 1992 , and she has been the subject of films and other books .