Google Year-End Zeitgeist 2013

Today, Google announced its annual Year End Zeitgeist, a look at 2013 through the collective eyes of the world on the web, offering a unique perspective on the year’s major events and hottest trends based on searches conducted in Malaysia.

[pullquote align=”right”]A Year in Malaysian Search: Google’s Top Searches of 2013. The Lahad Datu incursion and actor Paul Walker top the 2013 trending lists[/pullquote]

The Lahad Datu standoff which began in February between armed militants and security forces in eastern Sabah had Malaysians gripped and searching for news and updates on Google.com.my during the four-month saga. Smartphone rebates via industry regulator SKMM — announced as part of the National Budget 2014 — took second place; followed by the results of the closely-contested 13th Malaysian General Elections which happened in May. The rest of the trending searches were rounded off by three hit Malay drama series.

Fast & Furious actor, Paul Walker’s death on November 30 generated plenty of interest, enough to offset searches for 12-year-old Indonesian street busker Tegar, who’s hit song “Aku yang dulu bukan yang sekarang” became a national phenomenon. In third place on the trending people list was national footballer Nor Sharul Idlan Talaha’s wife’s verbal scuffle with a security guard which was captured on video.

● Lahad Datu standoff, smartphone rebate and GE13 results were the country’s trending searches
● Paul Walker’s tragic death in a car crash makes the late actor the most-searched person of 2013
● Local search terms accounted for more than half of all trending lists

Zeffri Yusof, Head of Communications and Public Affairs for Google Malaysia says, “Google is the first place Malaysians turn to for information or to discover new things and people; the year-end Zeitgeist is a cultural barometer that gives us a real snapshot of the big events and trends in Malaysia for 2013.”

Malaysia’s Trending Queries of 2013

1. Lahad Datu
2. SKMM
3. Keputusan PRU13
4. Setia Hujung Nyawa
5. Gwiyomi
6. Teduhan Kasih
7. Malindo Air
8. WeChat
9. The Conjuring
10. Cinta Jannah

Malaysia’s Trending People of 2013

1. Paul Walker
2. Tegar
3. Isteri Mat Yo
4. Sharifah Zohra Jabeen
5. Nelson Mandela
6. Jackie Chan
7. Sultan Sulu
8. Adam Adli
9. Lea Michele
10. Gareth Bale

Other Malaysian Trending and Top Searches of note:

In addition showcasing what people were curious about in Malaysia, Google Zeitgeist tools also offer insight into which topics captured the world’s attention in 2013. Top search terms from over fifty countries appear on our Google Zeitgeist webpage, googlezeitgeist.com — from most-searched travel destinations in Brazil, to trending Australian celebrities, to most-searched Egyptian Olympians, to top tech gadgets in Japan and everything in between.

Top 10 Global Trending Queries for 2013

1. Nelson Mandela
2. Paul Walker
3. iPhone 5s
4. Cory Monteith
5. Harlem Shake
6. Boston Marathon
7. Royal Baby
8. Samsung Galaxy S4
9. PlayStation 4
10. North Korea

To see more information about Google Zeitgeist across the globe, use interactive data visualizations and to watch our annual video, visit googlezeitgeist.com

What is Google’s Year-End Zeitgeist?
Google reveals the Internet “Zeitgeist” (German for “the spirit of the times”) through an exploration of the over one trillion search queries we receive each year. In addition to the Year-end Zeitgeist, which highlights the top trends of 2013, we also have several tools that give insight into global, regional, past and present search trends. Google Zeitgeist tools can never be used to identify individual users because we rely on anonymized, aggregated counts of how often certain search queries occur over time. These tools are available year-round for you to play with, explore, and learn from at google.com/zeitgeist

About Google Inc.
Google’s innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google’s targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.