UAE’s Google trends in 2015 revealed

The popular search engine released its annual list of the year’s most popular queries with rankings from a number of categories revealing the top trending searches by residents.

Apple’s iPhone 6s was the most searched-for item on Google by UAE users this year. Chesnot / Getty Images

ABU DHABI // Forget wildly popular songs, blockbuster films or headline-grabbing world events – Apple’s iPhone 6s was the most searched-for item on Google by UAE users this year.

The company released its annual list of the year’s most popular queries from residents.

Coming in behind searches for the smartphone was information on cricket’s Indian Premier League, Furious 7, which was partly filmed in the UAE, Ramadan and video game Agario.

In the entertainment world, singers Adele, Ed Sheeran, Jessie J, Wiz Khalifa and Drake took the top 5 spots in the search for music.

Top movie searches saw UAE users seeking information on Furious 7, Jurassic World, Spectre, Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation, and American Sniper.

The results show a growing interest in people, movies, technology, sport and global events, said Joyce Baz, head of communications at Google Mena.

“Our Year in Search is meant to reflect the spirit of the times for each country, and we strive to capture this spirit through exploring the year’s new and exciting search terms,” she said.

Other rankings include the most searched brands, with Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, souq.com and Dubai’s Electricity and Water Authority on top.

This year’s most searched person, who was sixth in the overall top-trending list and most searched current event, was the late Sheikh Rashid bin Mohammed Al Maktoum.

The eldest son of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, died of a heart attack on September 19, aged 33.

Second on the list of most searched people was Filipino actress Andrea Brillantes, 12, who hit the headlines after a private video was leaked.

Others in the top 10 were former basketball player Lamar Odom, who was taken to hospital in October after an overdose, former Indian president A P J Abdul Kalam, who died in July, and American television personality Caitlyn Jenner.

In sport, this year’s IPL led the way along with the ICC Cricket World Cup. The Rugby World Cup, South American football tournament Copa America, Wimbledon and the Mayweather v Pacquiao boxing match also made the cut.

In the list of most searched for events, second was the Nepal earthquake, then the recent terrorist attacks in Paris, January’s Charlie Hebdo massacre, and the death of Abdul Kalam.

The results were gathered by studying trillions of Google searches, internal tools and an algorithm comparing the increase in searches for a term over a specific period, Ms Baz said.