Birth seasonality in Ireland
Ireland: Birth seasonality was 27.42 births per million people in 2022. ▼ Falling
Latest (2022)
27.42 births per million people
Change on year
down 17.2%
World rank
10th
of 40 countries
All-time high
56.94 births per million people
in 1980
All-time low
27.42 births per million people
in 2022
Years of data
45
1978–2022
Birth seasonality in Ireland, 1978–2022
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in births per million people.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 27.42 births per million people for birth seasonality in 2022. That is the lowest value across all 45 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 17.2% on the previous year and down 31.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, birth seasonality in Ireland peaked at 56.94 births per million people in 1980 and was at its lowest, 27.42 births per million people, in 2022.
That places Ireland 10th out of 40 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 45 years of available data.
Birth seasonality in Ireland, year by year
| Year | births per million people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 55.91 births per million people | — |
| 1979 | 56.39 births per million people | +0.9% |
| 1980 | 56.94 births per million people | +1.0% |
| 1981 | 54.73 births per million people | -3.9% |
| 1982 | 52.87 births per million people | -3.4% |
| 1983 | 48.09 births per million people | -9.0% |
| 1984 | 45.39 births per million people | -5.6% |
| 1985 | 43.91 births per million people | -3.3% |
| 1986 | 44.19 births per million people | +0.7% |
| 1987 | 42.65 births per million people | -3.5% |
| 1988 | 38.39 births per million people | -10.0% |
| 1989 | 39.6 births per million people | +3.2% |
| 1990 | 38.31 births per million people | -3.3% |
| 1991 | 37.78 births per million people | -1.4% |
| 1992 | 35.77 births per million people | -5.3% |
| 1993 | 33.28 births per million people | -7.0% |
| 1994 | 35.79 births per million people | +7.6% |
| 1995 | 34.31 births per million people | -4.1% |
| 1996 | 37.8 births per million people | +10.2% |
| 1997 | 38.51 births per million people | +1.9% |
| 1998 | 38.38 births per million people | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 39.34 births per million people | +2.5% |
| 2000 | 37.48 births per million people | -4.7% |
| 2001 | 38.93 births per million people | +3.9% |
| 2002 | 41.33 births per million people | +6.2% |
| 2003 | 40.37 births per million people | -2.3% |
| 2004 | 40.87 births per million people | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 39.24 births per million people | -4.0% |
| 2006 | 40.39 births per million people | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 43.74 births per million people | +8.3% |
| 2008 | 45.8 births per million people | +4.7% |
| 2009 | 45.52 births per million people | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 45.17 births per million people | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 43.99 births per million people | -2.6% |
| 2012 | 39.75 births per million people | -9.6% |
| 2013 | 39.98 births per million people | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 38.56 births per million people | -3.5% |
| 2015 | 37.06 births per million people | -3.9% |
| 2016 | 35.84 births per million people | -3.3% |
| 2017 | 33.18 births per million people | -7.4% |
| 2018 | 33.53 births per million people | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 30.93 births per million people | -7.7% |
| 2020 | 28.63 births per million people | -7.4% |
| 2021 | 33.12 births per million people | +15.7% |
| 2022 | 27.42 births per million people | -17.2% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 27.42 births per million people is above the median for high income countries, which is 23.36 births per million people, 1.2× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 27.42 births per million people is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 23.39 births per million people, 1.2× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 56.15 births per million people | 55.91 births per million people | 56.39 births per million people | 2 |
| 1980s | 46.68 births per million people | 38.39 births per million people | 56.94 births per million people | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.93 births per million people | 33.28 births per million people | 39.34 births per million people | 10 |
| 2000s | 41.37 births per million people | 37.48 births per million people | 45.8 births per million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 37.8 births per million people | 30.93 births per million people | 45.17 births per million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 29.73 births per million people | 27.42 births per million people | 33.12 births per million people | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
- 7 Ukraine 28.56 births per million people compare
- 8 United States 28.43 births per million people compare
- 9 Iceland 27.8 births per million people compare
- 11 Slovakia 27.26 births per million people compare
- 12 Czechia 26.39 births per million people compare
- 13 Estonia 26.25 births per million people compare
More population data for Ireland
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.1157 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.4488 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -1.68 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.4488 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.5% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 217,052 people (2100)
- Population density 76.73 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -0.5% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.1844 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.5372 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is birth seasonality in Ireland?
- Birth seasonality in Ireland was 27.42 births per million people in 2022, according to Human Mortality Database (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest birth seasonality recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 56.94 births per million people in 1980.
- What is the lowest birth seasonality recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 27.42 births per million people in 2022.
- How does Ireland rank for birth seasonality?
- Ireland ranks 10th out of 40 countries with data for 2022.
- Is birth seasonality rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 31.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Birth seasonality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Average daily number of births, per million people, calculated for December.