In the enchanting islands of Malta and Gozo, the romance of tying the knot saw a subtle shift, with the total number of nuptials dipping to 2,239 in the past year, down from 2,527 back in 2010. It seems that traditional church weddings felt the biggest pinch, witnessing the most notable drop.

Diving into the specifics, 2023 unfolded with 1,274 couples opting for civil ceremonies, contrasting sharply with the 965 who chose to exchange vows at the altar. This is a flip from the scenario in 2010, where the scales were tipped with 787 civil unions and a whopping 1,740 couples walking down the church aisle.

Between 2010 and 2013, the islands celebrated love with 34,000 marriages making it official. This intriguing snapshot of matrimonial trends was shared by Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri, in response to PN MP Graziella Attard Previ’s curiosity about the breakdown of church and civil marriages over the years.

This update follows closely on the heels of another revelation that rocked the parliament a few months ago, highlighting that over 4,400 marriages had unraveled into divorces over the last 13 years.