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A Year in Search: Google Releases Top Searched Terms of 2008 in the Philippines

Dec 10, 2008

1. Pinoys worried less about crime and politics than the various Pacquiao fights, particularly the ‘dream match’ against Oscar De La Hoya, making Pacman the undisputed search champ of 2008.

2. YouTube stars Charice Pempengco and Arnel Pineda lead the fastest rising celebrities category, while actress Marian Rivera breaks into the list.

3. Pinoys, rejoice! Noli and Fili are alive in our hearts. Classical Filipino literature dominates Filipino-related searches category.

Manila, Philippines, December 10, 2008 – Today, Google announced its annual Zeitgeist for the Philippines, featuring the fastest rising search terms entered on Google.com.ph in 2008. The year-end Zeitgeist offers a unique perspective on the year's major events and hottest trends based on searches conducted in the Philippines.

Fresh from his bout with Oscar de la Hoya, “Pambansang Kamao” Manny Pacquiao bags the title of fastest rising local newsmaker, occupying the top four out of ten slots on the fastest rising Google News local searches list. YouTube singing sensations Charice Pempengco and Arnel Pineda reigned as first and second respectively in the fastest rising celebrity searches list while Dyesebel star Marian Rivera debuted at number ten, making her the only local female celebrity on the list. This year’s Zeitgeist also reflects surging interest in classical Filipino literature, with seven out of the ten fastest rising Filipino-related search terms related to that field.

Each of these lists shows the fastest rising searches, meaning these were the search terms that saw the biggest increase in searches during 2008, as compared to 2007. Take a look below to get sense of the zeitgeist, or spirit of the times, in the Philippines for 2008!

* Disclaimer: All duplicates, as well as the country name “Philippines” have been removed from the list.

Top searches of 2008
  1. lyrics
  2. friendster
  3. you
  4. games
  5. yahooyoutube
  6. love
  7. google
  8. mp3
  9. map
 Fastest rising searches of 2008
  1. cabal
  2. y8.com
  3. psp
  4. comments
  5. emo
  6. friendster.com
  7. naruto
  8. multiply
  9. mozilla
  10. realize lyrics
Fastest rising Google News
local searches
  1. manny pacquiao
  2. pacquiao vs. delahoya
  3. pacquaio marquez fight
  4. pacquiao diaz fight
  5. ces drilon
  6. rcbc bank robbery
  7. 2008 sona
  8. the dream match
  9. bar exam result
  10. reproductive health bil
 Fastest rising celebrity searches
  1. charice pempengco
  2. arnel pineda
  3. dj montano
  4. wu chun
  5. jonas brothers
  6. heath ledger
  7. miley cyrus
  8. chris brown
  9. mike he
  10. marian rivera
Fastest rising Filipino-related searches
  1. florante at laura
  2. ibong adarna
  3. pinoy jokes
  4. noli me tangere
  5. el filibusterismo
  6. bugtong
  7. tula
  8. filipino scientist
  9. alamat
  10. talumpati
 Fastest rising local travel destination searches
  1. pangasinan
  2. cebu
  3. palawan
  4. baguio
  5. sagada
  6. bohol
  7. el nido
  8. plantation bay
  9. tagaytay
  10. punta fuego

Point your browser to http://www.google.com/zeitgeist2008 to read about the year's top gaining and declining search terms as well as the most popular entertainment, sport, political economic and local topics as determined by Google users in 35 countries including the Philippines.

More Filipinos Searching Online for a Better Deal during Tough Times

This year's Zeitgeist would not be complete without a final note on the economic downturn, which was top of mind for users in the Philippines. According to Google Insights for Search, there were large increases in the number of searches for “sale” [36% increase], “tipid” [36% increase], and “free” [10% increase], reflecting Filipinos searching more often online to find the best deals and save money (see graph below). Terms like “recession” [2600% increase] and “financial crisis” [333% increase] also saw significant spikes in search volume when the global markets were falling in September and October. To check out what else Filipinos are searching for and to compare search volumes across time frames or regions, visit Google Insights for Search at www.google.com.ph/insights/search.



A web search volume graph generated by Google Insights for Search shows that local searches for 'sale' have increased by 36% in 2008 compared to 2007.

Zeitgeist explained
Google reveals the internet “Zeitgeist” (German for "the spirit of the times") through an exploration of the millions of search queries we receive every day. In addition to the Year-end Zeitgeist, which highlights the top trends of 2008, 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 anonymized, aggregated counts of how often certain search queries occur over time. These tools are available year-round for you to play with, explore, and learn from: www.google.com/zeitgeist.

About Google Inc.
Google’s innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google’s targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, please visit www.google.com.ph.

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