SkyHorse.Org

Google Trends: what the world is searching for

Earlier in May this year Google quietly lunched a new addition to their collection of online tools, which already include a word processor and a browsable maps of Mars, called “Google Trends“. “See what the world is searching for” they have it for it’s punch line so that’s exactly what I did. And awe the results!

So let’s get started with the obvious so they all get out of our enquiring minds before getting down to the real thing:

Keyword: sex
Search Trend: Sex
In terms of quantity, it remained the same since 2004, so we looking for “sex” on google as much as we were back then. The interesting part is the geographical regions:

And here is my first surprise. The USA is not the top region in the world quering for “sex”. Not even the second. Heck, it doesn’t even show up in the top 10! No sir, top regions are, in fact, Pakistan, Egypt, Viet Nam and Iran. It could be a statistical blip, but why would these regions be looking for “sex” more than anywhere else in the world? Could it be the fact that sex, like many other “liberal” subjects, is tabooed in these places? If so, does it mean the oh so great Internet is really opening the window and borders of the world, like the media pitches it to be?

Keyword: terrorism

Search Trend: Terrorism

Now here’s an interesting trend: The United States is number 6 and United Kingdom number 8. Canada and Sweden barely make it to the top 10. Is the western world really not that bothered about terrorism? Could it actually be affecting more the Muslim world than it is the Western world as we tend to believe? Pakistan, again, makes it to number one with more than double the searches as region number two, the Philippines. Is Pakistan so worried about terrorism? Or so misinformed about it at home that it’s citizens look for answers on the Internet?

Keyword: education

Search Trend: Education

And here it is, Pakistan leading the race with more than double the queries for “education” as the second region, India. Philippines follows with South Africa a close fourth.
Could it be another statistical blip? Why would Pakistanis and Indians search for “education” more than all the other top 10 regions combined? Are we seeing a trend that we search for what we do not have at home? Or on the other hand is it for things we care about? Does this mean the Pakistani/Indian region is showing an overwhelming craving for education?

Keyword: money

Search Trend: Money

It is official, the United Kingdom leads the world when it comes to searching for money. India appears fifth, the only Asian country to be in the top 10. And I thought they were all spirituality and all… New Zealand takes second place with the United States coming right on queue in third place followed by Australia and Canada. Is Western society really so much more concerned about money than the rest of the world?

Keyword: weapons

Search Trend: Weapons

The usual suspects: United States, New Zealand and Australia are in the top 4, which is lead by South Africa. Interesting seeing Finland and Sweden in the top 10, so much for the Scandinavian peace…
Interestingly, the trend for “bombs” closely mirrors that of “weapons”…

Keyword: religion

Search Trend: Religion

A nice keyword with fresh new countries showing up. Heavily dominated by Latin-American countries, “religion” seems to fit their culture and life-style, possibly why it is reflected in what people search for in that region. Colombia, Chile, Philippines, Mexico and Peru lead the table with the United States and Canada making a shy appearance. They obviously care more about religion than the rest of us…

Keyword: poker

Search Trend: Poker

With the United States ban on Internet Gambling (poker included) most online poker sites have closed or are in process of closing their US operations. Interestingly, it is Europe who leads the queries for “poker” on google, with Sweden, Denmark and Norway making the top 3 table. Not quite surprising, if you are a regular online poker player.

To finish this off I will leave here some interesting stats on how keywords compare against each other, that is, how much more people look for “sex” than for “religion”…

Search Trend: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism

christianity islam judaism hinduism

Search Trend: Sex, Religion

sex religion

Search Trend: Money, Religion

money religion

Search Trend: Education, Money, Sex, Religion, Terrorism

education money sex religion terrorism

Share/Bookmark
Tags: christianity, Computing, google, islam, keywords, poker, search, sex, web-marketing

Related posts:

  • Google Trends – What the world is searching for: one year later
  • New web marketing strategy born?
  • Things you should read before you comment: The entire Pope’s speach on 12th September in Germany

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 15th, 2006 at 1:35 am and is filed under Computing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

« Web Host Company hacks into their own client’s accounts
Award winning photos – part 1 »

3 Responses to “Google Trends: what the world is searching for”

  1. m i n d c o d e » Blog Archive » Google Trends: What the world is searching for Says:
    October 17th, 2006 at 1:20 am

    […] Excelent essay by my friend Paulo Cunha on the statistical analysis of searched keywords by several countries. A *must* see! […]

  2. SkyHorse.Org :: Google Trends - What the world is searching for: one year later Says:
    October 19th, 2007 at 11:14 pm

    […] A year ago I came across some interesting statistics available through Google Trends showing, for example, how Pakistan lead the league table on the search for “sex” and “terrorism”. A year on I decided to revisit and see how the world changed (or not!). […]

  3. Nino Gonzales Says:
    October 6th, 2008 at 3:43 am

    I just did a full “study” on filipino culture using google trends… it might interest you… http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=User:Nino_Gonzales/The_Filipino_Soul_According_to_Google

Leave a Reply

CAPTCHA Image
Refresh Image
*

  • Tags

    advertising AI apple behavioural-targeting business Computing cPanel deep packet inspection Downloads DSP Games GNU/Linux google hacking hacking Hardware headphones hosting Ideas Instant Messaging iphone marketing online-advertising online media Personal Philosophy phorm poker Programming satire scripts Security sociology startups technology Travel ubuntu v-moda Visionarism web-2.0 web-marketing Web Design WHM wunderloop yahoo
  • Pages

    • About
    • Web Server Administration
      • Auto update modsecurity rules – modsec.sh
      • DirectAdmin to cPanel : a partial BASH solution
      • The Definite Guide of Obscure Tweaks to Install and Maintain cPanel / WHM (version 10)
        • Configuring E-mail (Exim) related areas
        • Fixing open DNS servers
        • Monitoring your server
        • Scripts and misc information
        • Security by Obscurity
        • Tweaking apache web server
  • Twitter Updates

    • Ads

    • RSS ExchangeWire.com

      • Epom Compiles 3 Checklists for Brand, Publisher, or Ad Network Business Growth 21 January, 2021
      • Adverty Continues Rapid Expansion With Appointment Of Chief Financial Officer 21 January, 2021
      • Miguel Araujo Joins Semasio as Director of Data Science 21 January, 2021
    • RSS Lies, Damned Lies…

      • GDPR, the sequel: Get ready for CCPA 20 April, 2020
      • Demystifying Data Science, Part V: AutoML 30 March, 2020
      • Google’s Ban on Third-party Cookies Could Actually Harm User Privacy 28 January, 2020
    • RSS iMedia Connection: Consumer Strategies

      • A consumer-driven mindset in a big media package
      • Learn to leverage the social-search connection
      • Your social media disaster kit
    • RSS Unknown Feed

    • RSS Adotas

      • 7 Reasons Your Small Business Needs an Automation Strategy (And How to Make it Work) 26 August, 2019
      • Psychology of Color in Branding Infographic 26 August, 2019
      • The Importance Of Instagram Analytics And the Supporting Tools to Use 29 July, 2019
    • RSS Brand Republic

    • RSS MarketingVox

    • RSS Behavioural Targeting news

      • 'Parents' Campaign Against School Closures Receives PR Support from Boris Johnson Advisor - Byline Times 21 January, 2021
      • Desi 4G core maker PertSol bags LBS contract from BSNL - ETTelecom.com 21 January, 2021
      • Is your office Covid-secure? Free online tool can calculate risk of virus spreading in poorly-ventilated pla.. - ETHealthworld.com 21 January, 2021
      • Divine Kpe: Back to School -How Schools Can Address Challenges Students Come With - Myjoyonline.com 21 January, 2021
      • Relief Announces Implementation of New Share Subscription Facility with Main Shareholder GEM - Yahoo Finance UK 21 January, 2021
    • Ads

    • Blogroll

      • 90kts
      • Acxiom Poker Nights
      • Amy’s blog
      • Bytter’s blog
      • Impare Arquitectura
      • Impare Design
      • morena flor no samba da saudade
      • Not Quite There Yet
      • Swedish Pirate Party
    • Cartoons

      • Geek & Poke
      • Order of the Stick
      • User Friendly
    • Gaming

      • Neverwinter Nights
    • online media

      • Knowledge for the Digital Economy
      • Mike on Ads
    • Personal

      • Banksy
      • Designarte
      • Made to measure shirts – Atelier de Camisa
      • My Amazon Wishlist
      • SkyServers.Org
    • Science

      • New Scientist
      • Rex Research
      • ScienceBox
      • Wired
    • Security

      • GPG4Win
      • GPGol
      • GPGShell
      • Mod Security
      • Offline Windows NT(2k,XP) Password Recovery
    • Web Design

      • PageStrength
      • SiteScore
      • UrlTrends
    • Meta

      • Log in
      • Entries RSS
      • Comments RSS
      • WordPress.org

    © 2003 - 2011 Paulo Cunha | SkyHorse.Org is proudly powered by WordPress | Theme based on Bob