mˈɔːd ɹˈoʊz ɹˈuːbənz wʌz bˈɔːɹn ˌɔn twˈɛnti noʊvˈɛmbɚ wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd nˈaɪnti sˈɛvən ɪn pɹɪtˈoːɹiə, sˈaʊθ ˈæfɹɪkən ɹᵻpˈʌblɪk, ðɪ ˈoʊnli tʃˈaɪld ʌv ɹˈoʊsə kˈæɹəlˌaɪn fˈɔːɹmɚli stˈɑːl, nˈeɪ hˈeɪbəl ænd dʒˈɜːmənbˈɔːɹn nˈoːɹbɚt ˈælbɚt ɹˈuːbənz, ɐ klˈɜːk ænd lˈeɪɾɚɹ ɐ mˈɜːtʃənt.
Maude Rose Rubens was born on 20 November 1897 in Pretoria, South African Republic, the only child of Rosa Caroline (formerly Staal, née Haible) and German-born Norbert Albert Rubens, a clerk and later a merchant.