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Divorce is down in Alaska. But so is marriage.
Alaskans were less likely to get married last year than any year on record, according to new statewide health data and federal statistics. Meantime, fewer Alaska women had babies in 2017, with the fertility rate dropping almost 7 percent year over year.
That's according to the 2017 Alaska Vital Statistics Report released Monday by the state Health Department. The statewide birth and marriage rates generally follow national trends.
Among the Alaska trends in birth, death and marriage data:
– Opioid overdoses killed more Alaskans — at least 99 — than homicides did in 2017. Yet the statewide homicide rate was also on the rise, with 76 murders last year compared to just 54 in 2016. (A Daily News review of FBI Uniform Crime Reports suggests it was not a record year for homicides statewide, however, with as many as 81 murders recorded in 1982.)
— Cancer remained the leading cause of death overall, accounting for about one in five of the 4,415 Alaska deaths in 2017.
— Classic baby names continue to make a comeback. "James" topped the list of boys' names, with Emma the favorite name for girls. Other top boys' names included Liam, William, Wyatt, Noah, Oliver and Logan. The top girls' names included Olivia, Aurora, Isabella, Evelyn and Sophia.
[Maverick, meet Piper. Behold the most popular baby names in Alaska]
The health department tracks how many babies are born by region and age of mother, among other public health trends. The Alaska fertility rate — defined as number of births per 1,000 women who are between 15 and 44 years old — dropped to 71.4 births last year compared to 76.4 births in 2016.
The only age group that saw an increase in fertility rates was women 40 to 44 years old.
The greatest number of babies were born in September, meaning Alaskans were most likely to conceive in cold, dark December. Meanwhile, Alaska couples were most likely to divorce in June and to marry in July.
The 2017 separation rate of 3.6 divorces or marriage dissolutions per 1,000 Alaskans was the lowest since at least 1990, according to state and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention records.