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Births Patterns
In an average year, there are approximately 750,000 births in the UK
In the UK, 60% of births take place in the twelve hours between 6 am and 6 pm. Births are more frequent on weekdays than at weekends. Tuesday is the most popular day for births while the smallest number occur on Sundays. The month with the highest number of births is May (Taurus) whilst the smallest number of births occurs in November (Scorpio).
In the northern hemisphere, the trend is for more births to take place in the first half of the year and in the southern hemisphere the pattern tends to be reversed, with more births occurring in the second half of the year. However, there is an exception to this rule in the USA, where the maximum number of births occurs in August and September! The reasons for these geographical differences are still not fully understood.
A Long and Healthy Life for your Child
Your child has an excellent chance of living to the age of 100! In 1900, there are estimated to have been only 50 people in the UK aged 100 or more. However, the latest goverment estimates suggest that by 2074 there could be as many as 1,000,000 centenarians in the UK!
Birth Certificates
Birth certificates were introduced into England and Wales in 1837 but even by the 1870s perhaps one person in five was still without one. Even as late as 1940, many older people were forced to apply for their first birth certificate in order to obtain an identity card and ration book.
The world's most expensive birth certificate is that of Sir Paul McCartney. It sold at auction in March 1997 for just over £52,000. Paul McCartney's stepmother had originally sold the certificate after the death of his father. It was put up for auction by a Californian record collector and bought by an anonymous London buyer.
In most of Europe the time of birth is recorded but in the UK, only Scotland records the time of birth. Australia and New Zealand do not record the time of birth either. In the USA the time of birth is recorded.
Shared Birthdays
Did you share your birthday with someone in your class at school? In a typical school class, there is a 50% chance that two of the children will have been born on the same day of the same year!
