THE average age of first-time brides in Northern Ireland has reached 30 for the first time.
Statistics released yesterday also show that the number of teenagers giving birth has reached an all-time low.
The annual report by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) revealed that 839 teenage girls became mothers last year.
It also showed that births to mothers aged 35 years and over continued to rise.
The findings revealed that while the average age of first-time brides reached 30 for the first time on record, grooms were slightly older with an average age of 34.
One marriage takes place every hour on average in Northern Ireland with Saturday June 21 the most popular day in 2014.
There were 8,550 marriages registered with St Eugene’s Cathedral, Derry, but Strabane local government district was the most popular venue for religious marriages.
Belfast Registrars’ Office was the most popular location for civil marriage ceremonies.
More than 100 civil partnerships were registered - 47 male and 63 female partnerships - up 10 on 2013.
On the flip-side, there were 2,455 divorces and 11 civil partnership dissolutions granted, with non-cohabitation remaining the most frequently recorded reason for separation.
The resident population in the north rose by 10,800 people to 1,840,500 in the year to June 30 2014.
Of the 24,394 births registered, 43 per cent took place outside of marriage.
The statistics also revealed there were 81 stillbirths, down a quarter on 2013 and the lowest number ever recorded in Northern Ireland.
Of the 14,678 deaths, the leading cause of death was cancer (29 per cent), followed by circulatory disease (25 per cent).
