From welcoming the Royal Baby to bidding goodbye to Paul Walker, customising bitstrips to finding Timbuktu, Google’s annual Zeitgeist is a barometer for what captivated Aussies in 2013.
Paul Walker’s sudden passing made him Australia’s top trending search* for 2013, followed in second by former Glee star Cory Monteith. The Royal Baby, Prince George of Cambridge, now third in succession for the British throne, similarly came in at number three on this year’s overall top trending list.
Also making the top 10 were searches about North Korea, information about how to stay safe from fires with the RFS, and registering to vote with the AEC. Three Australian reality TV shows, The Block, My Kitchen Rules, and House Rules also made the year’s top trending list.
Australians were feeling particularly arty in 2013, with how to draw topping this year’s ‘how to’ searches. Creative Aussies continued their fascination with DIY crafts by wanting to learn how to crochet, how to knit and how to make other homemade tidbits too. Romeos and Juliets across the nation looked for tips about how to kiss to win over their Capulets and Montagues.
While advanced dancers were looking to master the intricacies of Miley Cyrus’ new moves, most of us first needed to ask what is twerking — making it our most searched ‘what is’ query this year. We also delved deeper into life and relationships this year to ask what is love and what is anxiety. To stay up to date with the latest tech lingo, we asked what is Instagram and what is Tumblr and searched for more information about Bitstrips, Snapchat and Bitcoins.
Major news searches about people included interest in the Royal Baby’s name and Angelina Jolie’s mastectomy, and we were also searching for Boston bombing, Typhoon Haiyan, Oklahoma tornado and Russian meteor. The US government shutdown, Costa Concordia situation and news about North Korea also piqued Aussie’s interest.
Miranda Kerr beat out Michelle Bridges and Tom Waterhouse to take out the title of Australia’s most-searched celebrity. Paul Walker, Cory Monteith Nelson Mandela, Tony Abbott and Oscar Pistorius were the top five trending people from around the world.
In this election year, how to vote made it into the top 10 ‘how to’ list. Voters jumped online to find out more information about prospective candidates, with Tony Abbott, Kevin Rudd and Clive Palmer our top three trending politicians.
Sonny Bill Williams took out the title as the most-searched athlete, with Federer and Lebron James taking out the silver and bronze. Local sports teams Sydney Swans and Essendon Football Club were outplayed by Chelsea to take out the most-searched sports team of 2013.
This year Australians also turned to Google to ask some tough questions including who is God, did dragons exist and where is Timbuktu.
Finally, you can explore more trends from more than 80 countries around the world directly from our Zeitgeist homepage. This year, we've also made an interactive 3D global map showcasing the top search trends of 2013 by day in cities around the world.
Australian Lists for 2013
Trending Searches 1. Paul Walker 2. Cory Monteith 3. Royal Baby 4. iPhone 5s 5. North Korea 6. RFS 7. AEC 8. The Block 9. My Kitchen Rules 10. House Rules | How to... 1. Draw 2. Kiss 3. Crochet 4. Meditate 5. Knit 6. Make 7. Vote 8. Twerk 9. Screenshot 10. Pronounce | What is...? 1. Twerking 2. Love 3. Gluten 4. Depression 5. Instagram 6. Snapchat 7. Anxiety 8. Diabetes 9. Cilantro 10. Tumblr |
News items of 2013 (Trending) 1. Boston Bombing 2. North Korea news 3. Royal Baby name 4. Typhoon Haiyan 5. Costa Concordia 6. US Government Shutdown 7. Oklahoma Tornado 8. Russian Meteor 9. Angelina Jolie Mastectomy 10. Texas Explosion | Politicians (Trending) 1. Tony Abbott 2. Kevin Rudd 3. Clive Palmer 4. Sophie Mirabella 5. Fiona Scott 6. Bill Shorten 7. Anthony Albanese 8. Joe Hockey 9. Julie Bishop 10. Bill Glasson | Australian Celebrities (Most Searched) 1. Miranda Kerr 2. Michelle Bridges 3. Tom Waterhouse 4. Delta Goodrem 5. Sonny Bill Williams 6. Liam Hemsworth 7. Hamish and Andy 8. Hugh Jackman 9. Dami Im 10. Iggy Azalea |
People (Trending) 1. Paul Walker 2. Cory Monteith 3. Nelson Mandela 4. Tony Abbott 5. Oscar Pistorius 6. Kevin Rudd 7. Ricky Martin 8. Amanda Bynes 9. Kim Kardashian Baby 10. Rolf Harris | People of the past (Most Searched) 1. Michael Jackson 2. Ned Kelly 3. Freddie Mercury 4. Bob Marley 5. Martin Luther King 6. Mother Teresa 7. Janis Joplin 8. Dorothea Mackellar 9. Michael Hutchinson 10. Norman Rockwell | Athletes (Trending) 1. Sonny Bill Williams 2. Federer 3. Lebron James 4. Rafael Nadal 5. Gareth Bale 6. Messi 7. Adam Scott 8. Luis Suarez 9. Ashton Agar 10. Anthony Mundine |
TV Shows (Trending) 1. The Block 2. My Kitchen Rules 3. House Rules 4. Big Brother 5. Offspring 6. The Bachelor 7. The Voice 8. Masterchef 9. House Husbands 10. The Mole | Fashion (Most Searched) 1. ASOS 2. Myer 3. David Jones 4. Country Road 5. Forever New 6. The Iconic 7. Cotton On 8. Witchery 9. Boohoo 10. Ozsale | Song Lyrics (Trending) 1. Thrift Shop Lyrics 2. Wrecking Ball Lyrics 3. Blurred Lines Lyrics 4. Royals Lyrics 5. Same Love Lyrics 6. Roar Lyrics 7. Impossible Lyrics 8. Little Talks Lyrics 9. Cup Song Lyrics 10. Stay Rihanna Lyrics |
Songs (Trending) 1. Gangnam Style 2. Blurred Lines 3. Wrecking Ball 4. Thrift Shop 5. Roar 6. Acapella 7. Gentleman 8. Royals 9. Same Love 10. Impossible | Sports Teams (Most Searched) 1. Chelsea 2. Sydney Swans 3. Essendon Football Club 4. Parramatta Eels 5. Wallabies 6. Melbourne Victory 7. Brisbane Lions 8. Sydney Roosters 9. Rabbitohs 10. Brisbane Broncos | Global Destinations (Most Searched) 1. Disneyland 2. Dubai 3. China 4. London 5. Malaysia 6. Koh Samui 7. Phuket 8. Cambodia 9. Antarctica 10. Mecca |
Recipes (Most Searched) 1. Pancake Recipe 2. Slow Cooker Recipe 3. Chocolate Cake Recipe 4. Thermomix Recipe 5. Scone Recipe 6. Fried Rice Recipe 7. Carbonara Recipe 8. Crepe Recipe 9. Soup Recipes 10. Pork Belly Recipe | Cheats (Most Searched) 1. Scrabble Cheat 2. GTA 5 Cheat 3. Draw Something Cheat 4. Fantasy Football Cheat 5. Words Cheat 6. Letterpress Cheat 7. Sims 3 Cheats 8. Crossword Cheat 9. Minecraft Cheat Codes 10. Candy Crush Cheats | Digital/Internet Lingo (Trending) 1. Bitstrips 2. Snapchat 3. Bitcoin 4. Vine 5. Doge 6. YOLO 7. Statigram 8. Grumpy Cat 9. Giraffe Riddle 10. Jailbreak |
Who is…? (Most Searched) 1. Redfoo 2. Banksy 3. Jesus 4. Gok 5. God 6. Allah 7. Jerry 8. Buddha 9. Siri 10. Zyzz | Where is…? (Most Searched) 1. Perth 2. Dubai 3. Gallipoli 4. Boston 5. Syria 6. Bali 7. Prague 8. Amsterdam 9. Singapore 10. Timbuktu | Did…? (Most Searched) 1. Turtleman Die 2. Jesus Exist 3. Tomic Win 4. Kerser Die 5. Mundine Win 6. Collingwood Win 7. Eminem Die 8. Dragons Exist 9. Chopper Die 10. Moses Die |
Posted by Shane Treeves, Communications and Public Affairs, Google Australia