Meet the twins who were born in different years

Twins Everett and Sawyer Shay were born 11 minutes apart but have very different birthdays, one in 2016 and the other in 2017.

Sawyer was delivered at 11.50pm at Thunderbird Medical Centre in Glendale, Arizona, on New Year's Eve. Then, minutes later, Everett arrived at 12.01am, making him the first baby born in 2017, The The  reports.

New parents Holly and Brandon Shay, who arrived at the hospital at 5.30pm that evening, said it was "a perfect birth", adding they had "a little foreshadowing that [it] was happening".

The Shays had already worked out who the more "stubborn" twin was, telling reporters Everett had been "hanging on until after midnight". The younger twin was also "taller" and "more energetic" than his brother, Mr Shay said.

The couple also have two daughters, aged four and 13.

"It's nice to have two boys ... welcome testosterone in the family. What a way to say, 'Happy New Year'", Mr Shay said.

The brothers were just one of four sets of twins born in different years in the US. Births like these are very rare, last new year only one set of American twins was known to be born on different years.