google year in search 2020

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Google 2020 Year in Search: Here’s what South Africans wanted to know [video]

South Africans tried to make sense of this tumultuous year by asking Google about the coronavirus, the US elections, unemployment grants and how and how to make pizza dough.

google year in search 2020

Image via Adobe Stock

Did Trump triumph on Google Search, or did Joe Biden beat him to it? Did South Africans really love Jerusalema? Did banana bread rise to the top or did pineapple beer beat it out? Google reveals all.

Google on Wednesday, 9 December 2020 hosted its annual Year in Search event to show exactly what South Africans were searching for throughout the year.

2020: What a year it was

And what a tumultuous year it was. Other than finding ourselves in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, we were also struck by a barrage of news, leading to even more questions.

“It’s been a year of quarantines, nose invasions, and meetings-that-should-have-been-emails. Locked indoors with all their questions, what did South Africans want to know most?”

Google Year in Search

While the theme was overwhelmingly bleak for 2020 (from COVID-19 to unemployment and lockdown), there’s a bit of humour here too. We were curious about cornflakes and chainsaws and the origins of vanilla.

“What time is the President on tonight” became a mantra and Mars landed the sixth spot in Top Trending Travel Searches. Speaking of Mars, SpaceX ran into a snag with the rocket that will eventually take us to the red planet.

The space exploration company aborted an altitude test of the Starship SN8 prototype at the last minute on 9 December 2020. But it’s 2020 still, so anything goes, we guess.

Without further ado, here are the 2020 Google Search results.

  • Coronavirus
  • US elections update
  • Sasol share price
  • Level 3 lockdown South Africa
  • Children’s Day
  • Hantavirus
  • Load shedding
  • Cigarettes ban South Africa
  • Teacher’s Day
  • Leap Day
  • How to apply for unemployment grant?
  • Who won the election?
  • What time is the President on tonight?
  • What is coronavirus?
  • What is 5G?
  • Where does vanilla flavouring come from?
  • Why were cornflakes invented?
  • Where to buy beer during lockdown?
  • Why were chainsaws invented?
  • How to make hand sanitiser?

South African personalities

  • Katlego Maboe
  • Nikita Murray
  • Edwin Sodi
  • Lerato Kganyago
  • Menzi Ngubane
  • Jackie Phamotse
  • Tino Chinyani
  • Sophie Ndaba
  • Nomcebo Zikode
  • Monique Muller
  • Kobe Byrant
  • Mshoza
  • Genius ‘Ginimbi’ Kadungure
  • Bob Mabena
  • Naya Rivera
  • George Floyd
  • Chadwick Boseman
  • Zinzi Mandela
  • Thandeka Mdeliswa
  • Mary Twala

Top ‘near me’ searches

  • Restaurant near me
  • Grocery store near re
  • Builders near me
  • Midas near me
  • Virgin Active near me
  • Hardware near me
  • Mexican food delivery near me
  • Massage spa near me
  • Game stores near me
  • Hiking near me
  • Pizza dough recipe
  • Doughnut recipe
  • Pineapple beer recipe
  • Banana loaf recipe
  • Pancakes recipe
  • Magwinya recipe
  • Lemon meringue recipe
  • Cinnabon recipe
  • Naan bread recipe
  • Pronstar martini recipe
  • Trip to Mauritius
  • Trip to Durban
  • Trip to Thailand
  • Trip to Mozambique
  • Trip to Hawaii
  • Trip to Mars
  • Trip to Singapore
  • Trip to Bali
  • Trip to Jamaica
  • Trip to Namibia
  • Joe Biden
  • Kim Jon Un
  • Kamala Harris
  • Boris Johnson
  • Angie Motshekga
  • Ace Magashule
  • Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams
  • Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma
  • Andile Lungisa
  • Bheki Cele

  • Premier League
  • England vs South Africa
  • PSL standings
  • IPL
  • Champions League
  • South Africa vs Australia
  • La Liga
  • Serie A
  • Europa League
  • Kaizer Chiefs vs Mamelodi Sundowns

Watch: Google’s Year in Search for 2020