Google’s announced the results of its 2017 Year in Search, offering a unique perspective on the year’s major moments and top trends based on searches conducted in South Africa.

On a global scale, Google says that we’ve asked the question “How” more than ever before:

This year’s local trending searches show growing interest in local celebrities and events, with seven of the top 10 trending search terms being local, in contrast to fewer than half  last year. South Africans are also increasingly using search to find local businesses – the ‘near me’ search list shows what types of businesses South Africans look for in their neighbourhoods and highlights the importance of these (often small) businesses being online and findable.

Top trending South African searches

  1. Dumi Masilela

  2. Zimbabwe

  3. Cyclone Dineo

  4. Joe Mafela

  5. Karabo Mokoena

  6. Joost van der Westhuizen

  7. Black Friday

  8. Mayweather vs McGregor fight

  9. Fast & Furious 8

  10. Hurricane Irma

Trending personalities

  1. Dumi Masilela

  2. Joe Mafela

  3. Joost van der Westhuizen

  4. Zodwa Wabantu

  5. Mandla Hlatshwayo

  6. Lundi Tyamara

  7. Simphiwe Ngema

  8. Grace Mugabe

  9. Hugh Hefner

  10. Chester Bennington

Top ‘near me’ searches

  1. Pharmacy near me

  2. Dentist near me

  3. KFC near me

  4. Jobs hiring near me

  5. Hardware store near me

  6. Gynaecologist near me

  7. Printing shops near me

  8. Steers near me

  9. Sushi near me

  10. Doctors near me

 

Top TV Shows

  1. 13 reasons why

  2. Games of Thrones

  3. Isibaya

  4. Uzalo

  5. Big Brother Naija

  6. American Gods

  7. Idols SA

  8. Sex in the City

  9. Big Little Lies

  10. Riverdale

 

Top searched recipes

  1. Oxtail recipes

  2. Sweet potato recipes

  3. Beef stew recipes

  4. Vegan recipes

  5. Creamed spinach recipes

  6. Halal recipes

  7. Prawn recipes

  8. Spaghetti recipes

  9. Cauliflower recipes

  10. Bread recipes

 

This information is gleaned from data collated by Google based on what South Africans have been searching for and asking Google this year. Google processes more than 40 000 search queries every second. This translates to more than a billion searches per day and 1.2 trillion searches per year worldwide.