The number of marriages in Malta is still among the highest in Europe but official data issued to mark Valentine’s Day shows the island’s marriage rate is at its lowest since 2009. 

The EU’s statistics office published the fresh data to mark the day synonymous with love being celebrated on Friday. 

According to the figures for 2018, the year under review, there were 5.8 marriages for every 1,000 inhabitants. The figure was the fifth highest in Europe and higher than the EU average which stood at 4.4 marriage per 1,000 people.

Couples in Cyprus were the most likely to get married, according to the data, with 7.8 marriages per 1,000 inhabitants. 

Those in Luxembourg appeared to be more reluctant to commit to marrying another person, with the rate there being the lowest in Europe at 3.1 marriages for every 1,000 residents. 

Malta’s rate down for first time in years

Yet while it seems more couples in Malta opt to get married than their European counterparts, the rate for the year reviewed was the lowest in a number of years. 

According to Eurostat’s data, the numbers had been on the rise since 2009, when there were 5.7 marriages for every 1,000 inhabitants. Since then, the marriage rate had gone up, with the highest rates recorded in 2012, 2015 and 2016 when it stood at 6.7 marriages. 

Ironically, the drop in marriage rate coincides with the 2017 legislative change to allow same-sex couples to marry. Up until that change, Malta only legally recognised marriages between a man and a woman, which meant the number of people who could get married was less.