GOOGLE MALAYSIA’S TOP SEARCHES 2011

Google releases Malaysia's top searches 2011

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 7, 2011): Google is releasing today its annual Zeitgeist lists for Malaysia: this year’s hottest selection of search terms on google.com.my. The lists offer a unique glimpse through the collective eyes of Malaysian searchers into the big events, memorable moments and emerging trends that captivated the nation throughout this year.

This year’s fastest rising searches reveal that in addition to social networking and launching Angry Birds at green pigs, Malaysians love a good laugh, with local reality TV show Maharaja Lawak landing the third spot.

When it comes to TV, Malaysians clearly love reality: America’s Next Top Model (ANTM), X Factor USA and American Idol 2011 were the most-searched for TV shows this year.

"Tonton" and "what is ppvrip" were also popular searches, indicating that Malaysians are bringing their appreciation for TV online.

Tech-crazy Malaysians had plenty of technology trends to plug into this year. Gadgets both real and rumored grabbed four out of the top ten fastest rising search queries: iPhone5, iPad2, Samsung Galaxy and Android were all popular searches.

Turning to Google with their tech-related questions, Malaysians asked “What is …” to find out more about ‘iPad,’ ‘hacking’ and ‘jailbreak.’

Singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, who visited Malaysia in April, leads a list of the fastest rising people searched which includes three other international music stars – Avril Lavigne, Rihanna and of course Justin Bieber, whose baby face topped the list of most popular image searches this year.

Malaysians also turned to image search to discover what fixed-gear bicycles look like as fixie culture took off, and to see Domo-kun, the furry mascot of Japan's NHK television station.

The fastest rising Malaysian searched for was YouTube sensation Cikgu Shida, who has garnered a large following miming to local and international hit songs.

Other Malaysians making the lists are young bloggers Fatin Liyana and Haniz Zalikha, politician Anwar Ibrahim, cleric Ustaz Kazim and muslimah designer Hana Tajima, who created a wave of headscarf fashion locally.

When it’s time for travel, Malaysians stick to what’s familiar – beaches and big cities. Searches for Su Mei Island, Maldives and Caribbean balanced with Hong Kong, Taipei and New York.

Disneyland is also popular with Malaysians, with both Paris and Hong Kong Disneylands showing up as top international travel destinations.

Google spokesperson Zeffri Yusof says: “Google’s year-end Zeitgeist is a cultural barometer that reveals just about everything that has us excited, curious or plain wanting to know more. From leaders, celebrities, current affairs to pop culture, sports and everything in between, search trends reveal what’s on the collective Malaysian mind.”

Google Malaysian Zeitgeist: Most popular and fastest-rising searches for 2011

Fastest rising searches 1. Facebook 2. Angry Birds 3. Maharaja Lawak 4. iPhone 5 5. Samsung Galaxy 6. iPad2 7. Jawatan kosong 8. Android 9. Tonton 10. Aishiteru	Fastest rising people 1. Bruno Mars 2. Hana Tajima 3. Cikgu Shida 4. Avril Lavigne 5. Anwar Ibrahim 6. Fatin Liyana 7. Justin Bieber 8. Rihanna 9. Ustaz Kazim 10. Hanis Zalikha
Top news stories 1. ipad 2 2. Malaysian grand prix 3. Kennedy space center 4. Kentucky derby 5. Japan nuclear crisis 6. MTV movie awards 7. Michael Jackson funeral 8. Malaysian open 9. Thailand flood 10. Malaysia budget 2012	Top image searches 1. Justin Bieber 2. Background designs 3. Fixie bike 4. Domo Kun 5. Monster energy 6. Supra shoes 7. Jules Verne 8. Smiley face 9. Kartun muslimah 10. Chelsea Olivia
Top ‘what is...’ searches 1. what is bersih 2. what is g6 3. what is ppvrip 4. what is ipad 5. what are words 6. what is jailbreak 7. what is android 8. what is lmao 9. what is hacking 10. what is information	Top TV shows 1. ANTM 2. x factor usa 3. american idol 2011 4. amazing race 18 5. tvb drama 2011 6. nagamma serial 7. supernatural 8. bones season 7 9. Al Jazeera 10. My Princess
Top international travel destinations 1. Kowloon/Hong Kong 2. Su Mei Island, Thailand 3. Phuket Island 4. Bangkok 5. Maldives 6. Disneyland Hong Kong 7. Taipei 8. Paris Disneyland 9. New York 10. Caribbean	Top blogs 1. Blog Serius 2. Beautifunara 3. Papagomo 4. Jejariruncing 5. Honeykoyuki 6. Oh Bulan 7. Kari ngeri 8. Malaymoviesfull 9. My Resipi 10. IniBelogSaya

Zeitgeist Explained

Google reveals the internet "Zeitgeist" (German for "the spirit of the times") through an exploration of the billions of search queries we receive each year. In addition to the Year-end Zeitgeist, which highlights the top trends of 2011, 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 anonymised, aggregated counts of how often certain search queries occur over time.

“Most popular” indicates search terms that are most frequently searched, while “fastest rising” queries are the search terms that have seen the largest increase in search volume over the year.