Google announced the local lists–trends, news, personalities, shows, events and more–that topped Filipinos’ search queries in 2020. The local results of the annual Year in Search provide an insight on what mattered most to Filipinos this year and how they navigated the uncertainties and challenges brought about by the pandemic.

Taking the number one spot on the list is the recently concluded US presidential elections. The whole world, including the Philippines, had their eyes on the race which saw a tight competition between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. I am one of those that kept typing in US Presidential election results, wondering if Biden did overtake Trump. It just shows the world was looking forward to a Trump defeat.

Basketball fans continued to pay close attention to their favorite NBA teams. All queries related to the NBA such as scores, schedules, and the highly anticipated finals match between Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat landed on the trending searches. Meanwhile, the passing of Black Mamba and basketball legend Kobe Bryant shocked the whole world including the Philippines, making him the only personality in this year’s overall trending searches for 2020.

Aside from coronavirus-related searches, completing the list are searches related to the Taal Volcano eruption in January, crisis response efforts (www.reliefagad.ph), and even the Department of Education for queries about the commencement of the school year.

A new category called “Education” emerged this year after a relative spike in academic-related searches as students embraced home-based learning, and looked up lectures and topics online.

In the Game-related Searches category, breakout mobile games Among Us, Genshin Impact, Valorant, and League of Legends: Wild Rift secured places in the list.

Filipinos’ love for Hallyu (Korean wave) deepened during the lockdown as they continued to search and enjoy content from their favorite K-pop personalities. K-dramas Crash Landing on You, It’s Okay To Not Be Okay, Start Up, Itaewon Class, The World of the Married, and The King: Eternal Monarch dominated the TV shows category. Academy Award-winning Korean film Parasite along with Train to Busan 2 also took up spots in the top movies list. I watched six of the 10 top searches.

Korean celebrities who starred in this year’s top series dominated the personalities categories. This included fan favorites such as Hyun Bin, Kim Soo-hyun, Park Ji-hoon, Jun Ji-hyun, Kim Go-eun, and Seo Ye-ji, among others.

Netizens leaned on the helpfulness of Google Search during the pandemic to discover and learn new things. How-to articles and video tutorials were once again popular this year, and among the most searched were related to health such as computing BMI, proper way to wear a surgical mask, and boosting the immune system, as well as hobby-centric topics like making dalgona coffee and leche flan. I am of those that did not prepare dalgona coffee only because it is too sweet. I am thinking that people missed drinking their lattes or milk tea in cafes or stalls.

“Looking back at the year that was, many Filipinos realized the importance of going digital now more than ever to search for answers and cope with the new changes happening around them. As per the latest SEA e-Conomy report, a significant number of Filipinos tried new digital services and 54% of these new consumers came from non-metro areas,” said Geia Lopez, Analytical Head for Consumer Packaged Goods and Retail, Google Southeast Asia. “Google is committed to making Search constantly helpful to Filipinos as they rely on technology to look for useful and trusted information, and reap the benefits of the digital economy to succeed and grow.”

The lists below can also be found at: g.co/2020trends/PH.

Year in Search 2020 Philippines

(Local)

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