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- Google has revealed the most searched-for terms by South Africans during 2023.
- Celebrities, sports stars and sporting events dominated the search bar.
- The Barbie movie, Thabo Bester, murdered rapper AKA, and the Springboks topped the lists.
Google South Africa released its annual 2023 Year in Search data, revealing that celebrities – some famous and some notorious – sports stars and sporting events once again dominated South Africans' searches online during the past year.
The year's Cricket and Rugby World Cups soared to the top of South Africans' most searched sporting events this year, while the Springboks reigned supreme on the most searched athlete lists.
The Rugby World Cup and Inter Miami also captured significant interest, claiming the second and third spots on the lists respectively.
Among celebrities and media personalities who died this year, rapper and producer Kiernan Forbes, known as AKA, topped the search list after his horrific murder in Durban in February.
Another South African rapper Costantinos Tsobanoglou, better known as Costa Titch was the second most searched individual in the "loss" category. The category also included Carte Blanche anchor Derek Watts, broadcaster Eusebius McKaiser, and politician Mangosuthu Buthelezi.
After conquering the box office worldwide, the Barbie film soared to the top of South Africa's most searched movies and TV shows, followed by the biographical thriller, Oppenheimer.
MultiChoice and M-Net's big-budget drama series Shaka Ilembe, which made its first season debut on Mzansi Magic (DStv 161), also made the most-searched list in the TV and film category in third place.
READ MORE | Shaka iLembe: The insider story and kingmaker start of SA TV's biggest show yet
The notorious criminal Thabo Bester and media personality and famous DJ Cyan Boujee were the top two most searched people.
While South Africans were eager to know the dates of upcoming events like Father's Day, Mother's Day and the 2023 Rugby World Cup final, their online searches also revealed a diverse range of interests, including literary comparisons and health concerns.
"How is poetry different to other writing genres?" and "How are mumps spread?" were the second and third top general questions that South Africans were searching for answers to. Interestingly, this year's most searched general question concerned Celine Dion's well-being.
Below are the full lists of top searches by South Africans in 2023:
Top 10 people searched in 2023
1. Thabo Bester
2. Cyan Boujee
3. Nadia Nakai
4. Dr Nandipha Magudumana
5. Andrew Tate
6. Derick Hougaard
7. Steve Harvey
8. Sim Dope
9. Anele Tembe
10. Tyla
Top searched Loss in 2023
1. AKA
2. Costa Titch
3. Matthew Perry
4. Tina Turner
5. Derek Watts
6. Titanic submarine
7. Zoleka Mandela
8. Mangosuthu Buthelezi
9. Christian Atsu
10. Eusebius McKaiser
11. Olive Barker
12. Angie Oeh
Top 10 movies and TV shows searched in 2023
1. Barbie movie
2. Oppenheimer
3. Shaka Ilembe
4. John Wick 4
5. Fast X
6. Queen Charlotte Bridgerton
7. The Last of Us
8. Creed 3
9. Fatal Seduction
10. Kaleidoscope
Top 10 most searched athletes in 2023
1. Springboks
2. Siya Kolisi
3. Bongi Mbonambi
4. Faf de Klerk
5. Eben Etzebeth
6. Cheslin Kolbe
7. Ox Nche
8. Hakimi
9. Roger Federer
10. Ronaldo
Top 10 sporting events searched in 2023
1. Cricket World Cup
2. Rugby World Cup
3. Inter Miami
4. Banyana Banyana
5. Kaizer Chiefs vs Mamelodi Sundowns
6. Wimbledon 2023
7. Liverpool vs Manchester United
8. Al Nassr
9. Netball World Cup
10. Jake Paul vs Tommy Fury
