Google announces top South African searches for 2017

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.

Trending personalities

Dumi Masilela
Joe Mafela
Joost van der Westhuizen
Zodwa Wabantu
Mandla Hlatshwayo
Lundi Tyamara
Simphiwe Ngema
Grace Mugabe
Hugh Hefner
Chester Bennington

Top ‘near me’ searches

Pharmacy near me
Dentist near me
KFC near me
Jobs hiring near me
Hardware store near me
Gynaecologist near me
Printing shops near me
Steers near me
Sushi near me
Doctors near me

Top TV Shows

13 reasons why
Games of Thrones
Isibaya
Uzalo
Big Brother Naija
American Gods
Idols SA
Sex in the City
Big Little Lies
Riverdale

Top searched recipes

Oxtail recipes
Sweet potato recipes
Beef stew recipes
Vegan recipes
Creamed spinach recipes
Halal recipes
Prawn recipes
Spaghetti recipes
Cauliflower recipes
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.