Facebook topped the list of Google’s most searched terms this year, surpassing the tech giant’s own YouTube video platform and Google itself, which took second and third place respectively.
In addition, online shopping websites gained popularity among web users with eBay, Amazon and Argos making into top ten list.
The death of former South African President Nelson Mandela was the ‘top trending’ search term among UK web users, followed by searches for the sudden death of the Fast and the Furious actor, Paul Walker.
Former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who died this year, and the birth of Prince George also featured in the top 10.
Among tech searches, the launch of Apple’s iPhone 5S and Microsoft’s Xbox One turned out to be biggest trending terms.
Google’s global ‘top trending’ search list was again topped by Nelson Mandela, while searches for Cory Monteith, Harlem Shake, Boston Marathon bombings, Samsung Galaxy S4, and North Korea appeared in the top 10.
Google senior VP Amit Singhal said: "Tragedies like the Boston Marathon, the sixth trending term globally, and Typhoon Haiyan, number two on our global events list, also captured the world’s attention.
"People uploaded more than 1.7 million video versions of the Harlem Shake to YouTube, propelling it to the number five spot on our global list; it was also the second most trending video on YouTube."
