How popular is YOUR birthday? Interactive chart reveals the most and least common days on which babies are born in Britain
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- ONS analyzed the number of live births in England and Wales from 1995 to 2014
- This shows a peak in the number of births at the end of September – 40 weeks after Christmas
Many people see it as a special day, but we have bad news for you: your birthday is really not that special.
In Britain alone, thousands of Britons share the same birthday, although some are more unusual than others.
Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows there was a peak in births at the end of September. This shows that more babies are conceived in the weeks around Christmas than at any other time of the year.
In contrast, Christmas Day itself has some of the fewest births, along with Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
So, how unique is your birthday? Use the interactive tool below to find out.
Many people see it as a special day, but we have bad news for you: your birthday is really not that special
To determine the most and least popular birthdays, the ONS analyzed the number of live births in England and Wales from 1995 to 2014.
And because the average pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, these dates can be used to derive the days when the most and least couples became pregnant.
“Birth data for England and Wales has been used to look at trends in the most and least popular birth dates over the past twenty years,” the report explains.
‘The interactive graph shows the average number of births on a given day and the ranking from first to 366th.’
Technically, February 29 had the lowest number of births over the twenty-year period.
However, this was discounted, because as a leap day it only occurs once every four years.
Outside of that, September 26 – exactly 39 weeks and two days after Christmas Day – turned out to be the most popular birthday.
And it seems the weeks around Christmas were also the most playful for couples, with eight of the ten biggest birthdays happening in late September.
‘Part of the reason for this increase in births may be due to couples planning to have children at the start of the school year,’ ONS said.
To determine the most and least popular birthdays, the ONS analyzed the number of live births in England and Wales from 1995 to 2014
The Christmas season has some of the least popular birthdays. Boxing Day was declared the least common birthday, followed by Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, December 27 and Christmas Eve
In contrast, the Christmas season has some of the least popular birthdays.
Boxing Day was declared the least common birthday, followed by Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, December 27 and Christmas Eve.
“This is probably due to the large number of public holidays during the period,” ONS explains.
‘Hospitals will generally only carry out natural deliveries and emergency caesarean sections during the holidays.
‘Induced births and elective caesarean sections are likely to be scheduled on alternative dates.’
Elsewhere, April Fool’s Day was the sixth least common birthday – perhaps because parents chose not to have an April Fool’s Day baby.
The news comes shortly after a study of millions of death certificates showed that the chance of dying on your birthday is higher than average.
The excesses of partying and accidents while traveling to parties are risk factors, researchers warned.
Suicides caused by the ‘birthday blues’ may also be to blame, according to academics at Chicago University.