According to CHA University Gangnam Medical Center, the two girls were born at exactly 12:00 a.m. to mothers aged 37, both in stable condition. One baby, weighing 2.88 kilograms, was delivered by cesarean section, while the other, weighing 3.42 kilograms, was born naturally. Both newborns and their mothers were reported to be healthy.
One of the babies, nicknamed “Jjaem,” is the first child of a couple married for four years. Her father, Yoon Sung-min, 38, said he felt especially joyful that his daughter arrived at the very beginning of the new year. “I hope she grows up happy and enjoys life, just like her nickname suggests,” he said with a smile.
The other newborn, nicknamed “Dori,” is the second child of her parents. Her father, Jung Dong-gyu, 36, said he had expected a late-December birth but was grateful that both mother and child held on until the new year. “It feels meaningful that she became one of the first babies of 2026,” he said, adding that he hopes more children will be born around her so she can grow up with many friends.
Separately, another baby girl was born under dramatic circumstances later that day aboard a fire-service helicopter in the skies over Jeju Island.
According to the Jeju Fire Safety Headquarters, emergency services received a request at 11:30 a.m. from an obstetrics clinic in Jeju City to transport a woman in her 30s who was experiencing premature rupture of membranes at 30 weeks of pregnancy. A rescue helicopter was dispatched, but during the flight to a mainland hospital, the woman went into labor and delivered the baby at 1:17 p.m.
Both the mother and newborn were reported to be in stable condition. Officials described the airborne delivery as a rare case, made possible by the swift response of emergency personnel.
The symbolic New Year births come as South Korea shows tentative signs of a rebound in childbirth after years of record-low fertility.
The country’s total fertility rate — the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime — stood at about 0.80 for the January–October period last year. If the trend holds through year-end, it would mark the first return to the 0.8 range in four years.
Korea’s fertility rate fell to 0.81 in 2021, dropped further to 0.78 in 2022 and hit a record low of 0.72 in 2023, before edging up to 0.75 in 2024 — the first rebound in nine years.
Government and research projections suggest the recent uptick may continue. The National Assembly Budget Office estimates the fertility rate at 0.80 last year and 0.90 this year, with a gradual rise to 0.92 by 2045. It attributes the improvement to a rebound in marriages delayed during the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in the population of women in their 30s, and gradually improving perceptions toward marriage and childbirth.
Official population projections also point to a recovery trend. Under the medium scenario, the fertility rate is expected to bottom out at 0.65 before rising to 0.68 this year, 0.71 in 2027 and 0.75 in 2028. A more optimistic scenario sees the figure climbing from 0.75 to 0.80 this year and 0.84 by 2027.
Public attitudes appear to be shifting as well. A survey by the Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy showed that the share of people expressing willingness to marry rose from 61.0 percent in March 2024 to 65.2 percent a year later. The proportion saying they believe children are necessary increased from 61.1 percent to 70.9 percent over the same period.
Still, the country's fertility rate remains well below the OECD average of 1.43 in 2023 and far under the replacement level of 2.1 needed to sustain the population.
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