ONS Analyzes Live Births in England and Wales from 1995 to 2014: Discover How Unique Your Birthday Really Is
Published by Shivali Best for Mailonline
Published: 10:07 BST, 17 September 2023
Updated: 10:26 BST, 17 September 2023
Do you consider your birthday to be a special day? Well, the truth might disappoint you. In the UK, thousands of people share the same birthday, although some dates are more uncommon than others. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has analyzed birth data from 1995 to 2014 and uncovered an interesting trend. It turns out that there is a peak in births in late September, indicating that more babies are conceived during the weeks surrounding Christmas compared to other times of the year. Conversely, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Day have some of the fewest births.
Curious to know just how unique your birthday is? Use our interactive tool below to find out.
To determine the most and least popular birthdays, the ONS examined live births in England and Wales over the course of two decades. Since the average pregnancy lasts for 40 weeks, this data can be used to deduce the days when the most and least couples conceived. “Birth data for England and Wales has been used to look at trends in the most and least popular birth dates over the past two decades,” explains the ONS. “The interactive graphic displays the average number of births on each day and ranks them from first to 366th.”
Let’s take a look at the top 10 most popular birthdays in the UK:
1. September 26
2. September 25
3. September 24
4. September 27
5. September 30
6. October 1
7. September 23
8. September 19
9. September 18
10. October 2
On the other hand, these are the 10 least popular birthdays in the UK:
1. December 27
2. December 25
3. January 1
4. December 27
5. December 24
6. April 1
7. April 13
8. January 2
9. November 30
10. December 28
It’s worth noting that technically, February 29 has the lowest number of births over the 20-year period. However, it was not included in the analysis, as it only occurs every four years as a Leap Day.
Interestingly, September 26, which falls exactly 39 weeks and two days after Christmas Day, turns out to be the most popular birthday. This suggests that the weeks around Christmas are when couples are more likely to conceive. The ONS speculates that this increase in births may be due to couples planning to have children at the start of the school year.
In contrast, the Christmas period has some of the least popular birthdays. Boxing Day takes the title for the least common birthday, followed by Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, December 27, and Christmas Eve. The ONS explains that this is likely due to the abundance of bank holidays during this period, resulting in hospitals only delivering natural births and emergency caesareans. Induced births and elective caesareans are typically scheduled for alternative dates.
In a related study, millions of death records revealed that the odds of dying on one’s birthday are higher than average. Researchers suggest that indulgent celebrations, accidents while traveling to parties, and even suicides triggered by the “birthday blues” could contribute to this phenomenon.
So, how popular is your birthday? Use the interactive tool above to find out.
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