Greek Women Give Birth to First Child at Record Age, Eurostat Data Shows

Greek women are giving birth to their first child at an increasingly older age, confirming a broader demographic trend recorded across Europe. According to the latest data from the European statistical authority Eurostat for the year 2024, the average age of women in Greece becoming mothers for the first time stood at 31.2 years. This figure places the country significantly above the European average, which rose to 29.9 years.

The Evolution of Maternal Age in Greece

The increase in the age at which Greek women have their first child has shown a rapid rise over the last two decades, a fact indirectly linked to the record number of pension applications and the gradual aging of the population. In 2001, the corresponding average was 27.7 years. In 2014, it crossed the 30-year threshold for the first time, and by 2021, it had exceeded 31 years. Since then, this age has continued to rise steadily every year.

A similar picture emerges when examining the age of women across all births, regardless of the child's birth order. In 2024, the average age of Greek women at childbirth reached 32.2 years, marking an increase of nearly three years compared to the 29.3 years recorded in 2001. The European average for total births stood at 31.3 years in 2024, confirming the trend of delayed motherhood in the country.

Greece's Position in the European Union

Greece's data aligns with a broader European pattern, although it places the country among the top of the relevant list. Italy records the highest age for having a first child in the EU at 31.9 years, followed by Luxembourg (31.6 years) and Spain (31.5 years). Greece, with an average of 31.2 years, is at the same level as Ireland, at a time when Greece is outperforming the Eurozone in other macroeconomic indicators, belonging to a group of countries where having a first child after 30 is now the norm.

Historic Lows in Fertility Rates

The rising age of new mothers occurs amidst a generalized decline in fertility across Europe. The total fertility rate in the EU fell to a historic low of 1.34 births per woman in 2024, down from 1.46 in 2022 and 1.57 in 2008. As Eurostat points out, the level required for population replacement—excluding migration—is 2.1, at a time when Greece's hidden pension debt (the long-term unfunded liabilities of the social security system) causes serious concern.

When the index falls below 1.3, the situation is characterized as "extremely low fertility." Greece is among the European countries that have failed to recover above this critical threshold, along with Spain, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Finland, and Estonia.

Overall, the number of births in the European Union amounted to 3.55 million in 2024, a figure reduced by almost half compared to the peak of 6.8 million births recorded in 1964. The delay of motherhood in Greece is now an indisputable fact, with the gap between the country and the European average continuously widening.