Riga Maternity Hospital Welcomes Twins Emīlija and Oliver as Its 3,000th and 3,001st Babies of the Year
Twins, a girl named Emīlija and a boy named Oliver, were born at the Riga Maternity Hospital and became the 3,000th and 3,001st babies born there this year. The births come as Latvia's birth rate keeps falling.
Twins have been born at the Riga Maternity Hospital, one of Latvia's maternity institutions: a girl, Emīlija, and her brother Oliver. They became the 3,000th and 3,001st babies born at the hospital this year. The institution announced the news on its Facebook account, at a time when Latvia's birth rate continues to decline and deaths far outnumber births.
According to the hospital's post, staff had been expecting the 3,000th baby but ended up welcoming two. Emīlija was born first, and her twin brother Oliver followed a few minutes later.
The family lives in Ozolnieki, in Jelgava municipality. The couple also have an older son, Ralfs, who is one year and ten months old. The hospital congratulated the new parents, mother Megija and father Antons.
Latvia's demographic situation
In 2025, Latvia's demographic situation was marked by a shrinking population, a low birth rate and an ageing society. At the start of 2026, roughly 1.845 million people lived in the country.
In 2025, 11,931 children were born in Latvia, while 26,109 people died, so deaths exceeded births by 14,178. A prolonged decline in births, population ageing and a shrinking share of working-age residents may, over the long term, negatively affect the country's economic development and labour market.
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