Livebirths
In 2021, 761 children were born, which in absolute numbers is 74 fewer than in 2020. Of these, 89.1 percent were born to mothers who were themselves born in Greenland. For most of the past 20 years, the annual number of live births has been between 800 and 900 children. This despite changes in settlement patterns, age distribution, educational conditions and much more.
Therefore, the decline in the number of livebirths in 2021 is surprising, as fertility in particularly has decreased for women in their 20s, living outside the main residences (localities with more than 700 inhabitants)
Virtually all children are born to mothers aged 18-40. Only 2 per cent were born in the past 5 years to women under 18 and only 2 per cent to women aged 40 and over.
In Table 2, the number of live births is distributed according to the mother’s municipality of residence, at the time of birth. The number of live births varies greatly from year to year in the municipalities. In order to compare the development over time, it is necessary to standardize the number of live births according to the number of mothers and their age distribution.
Table 2, Liveborn in the Municipalities 2012 - 2021
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenland | 786 | 820 | 805 | 854 | 830 | 853 | 819 | 849 | 835 | 761 |
| Kommune Kujalleq | 90 | 112 | 94 | 122 | 77 | 113 | 87 | 98 | 90 | 75 |
| Kommuneqarfik Sermersooq | 306 | 315 | 327 | 336 | 296 | 347 | 328 | 332 | 362 | 344 |
| Qeqqata Kommunia | 123 | 138 | 126 | 123 | 139 | 140 | 128 | 158 | 121 | 143 |
| Kommune Qeqertalik | 105 | 102 | 98 | 100 | 126 | 99 | 92 | 114 | 85 | 61 |
| Avannaata Kommunia | 162 | 153 | 160 | 173 | 192 | 154 | 184 | 147 | 177 | 138 |
Fertility
The development in the number of live births is described and understood through demographic fertility measures. These measures show the number of live births in relate to the number of women who have given birth, as well as their age distribution. In different ways, the measures describe how many children women on average give birth to throughout their lives. The individual goals are described in the method section
Chart 3 shows the development in total fertility over the past 20 years. Since 2010, fertility has remained just around 2.1 children per woman, which is exactly the level at which a population can reproduce itself over time, disregarding the influence of migration. The large fluctuations for women born outside Greenland are due to the fact that the calculation basis is significantly smaller than for those born in Greenland.
Compared to the Nordics, only the Faroe Islands have been able to maintain the somewhat higher fertility level since the 2000s. The fertility level of the other Nordic countries in these years is 1.5-1.8 children per woman, which is, however, above the EU average.
Chart 4 shows the fertility of Greenlandic-born women, by age in 2001, 2011 and 2021, respectively. The decline in fertility from 2000 to 2010 (Chart 3) is due to fewer very young women having children. The average age of first-time women has increased by 2,9 years from 22.1 in 2001 to 25 in 2021.
The same is shown in Chart 5, where fertility is grouped into 5-year intervals. Fertility has been declining for women in the 3 youngest age groups and increasing in the older age groups.
When the country’s localities are grouped according to population, a clear connection is seen between fertility and the size of the locality. It must be seen in connection with the fact that the larger localities are also training centers. In the smaller localities, women have more children and they have them earlier than in those who live in larger communities.
