Georgia saw 62,726 babies born in 2010, Georgy Vashadze, head of the
Georgian Agency for Civil Registry of the Justice Ministry, said on
January 14.
He said that 32,617 boys (52% of the total births) were born. Vashadze
said that the most popular name for boys is Georgy, for girls -
Mariam, Georgia Online reports.
The official emphasized that the Georgian birth rate rises annually.
61,839 babies were born in 2009, 57,263 in 2008, 48,027 in 2007.
Vashadze pointed out that the population increased by 12,132, in terms
of the birth/death ratio.
Experts believe that the rising birth rate is due to the initiative of
the Catholicos Patriarch of All-Georgia Ilia II, who becomes the
godfather of one of every three children in families. Ilia II
announced the initiative in 2008 to improve the Georgian demography.
