Luca and Mia were among the most popular names in 2022, the Ministry for Home Affairs, Security, Reforms and Equality revealed.
"2022 was once again a busy year for the Malta Public Registry, within Identity Malta Agency. This office provides important services that relate to the lives of Maltese citizens, from the registration of births and deaths to the publication of marriage banns and the issue of copies of acts of civil status," the government said.
3,978 new-borns were registered with the Malta Public Registry. 2,016 (50.7%) of whom were males and 1,962 (49.3%) of whom were female.
This figure registers 186 fewer new-borns than the previous year.
The four most popular names for boys in 2022 were Luca, Liam, Noah and Matteo. For girls, the most popular names were Mia, Emma, Nina and Giulia.
The most popular names in Maltese were Ġanni and Luċija. In total there were 35 names with Maltese diacritics, 13 for girls and 22 for boys.
"The service provided by Identity Malta Agency's office at Mater Dei hospital is still widely popular due to its convenience. During 2022, 90% notified their newborns at the Agency's office situated in Mater Dei (totalling 3,592 babies) while 60.6% (2,314 deaths) registered a deceased person at the same office. Registrations of births and deaths can be alternatively done by post or online."
"Marriage registrations during 2022 amounted to 2,237, resulting in an increase of 240 couples when compared to 2021. There were also 31 cohabitations registered, therefore 26 registrations less than the previous year, while only a single registration was made for a civil union," the government said.
An application for the acquisition of a birth, death, marriage, or civil status certificate can be facilitated through the online portal service offered by the Malta Public Registry. "During the year 2022, a total of 69,042 certificates of births, marriages and deaths were issued, resulting in an increase of 654 certificates issued in 2021, of which 40,960 certificates were bought online and the remaining 28,082 were purchased in person. During the same period, 40 cohabitation certificates and 693 Free Status certificates were also issued."
Identity Malta Agency CEO, Colonel Mark Mallia said that over the past year, the Agency has rolled out new services and yet again it has reported a surge in online activity. Identity Malta remains committed to offering new online services without compromising on security, he said. Mallia concluded that "despite this surge in online activity, community services, such as those offered at Mater Dei office, still remain highly popular."