Facebook, Obama and BBC top Google search terms for 2008

Google's top search terms of the year are a surprise only in how mundane they are.

The top three most searched terms in the UK Facebook, BBC and YouTube likely reflect lazy typing habits more than inquisitiveness, given the basic URLs for those sites don't exactly require investigation to uncover.

The fastest rising search terms are a bit more interesting. That list is topped by BBC's iPlayer, and sees the Large Hadron Collider which many feared would destroy the world ranking sixth above now President-Elect Barack Obama, who many hope will change the world.

The most searched politicians in the UK were Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Obama, but globally, the latter's opponent Sarah Palin was tops.

"This year's global fastest rising searches show interest in global events such as the Beijing Olympics and Euro 2008, with a number of American politicians and international social networking sites showing up as well," Google said in a statement.

See below for a selection of the lists, or click here for the full list.

The Google results differed from search competitor Yahoo's list, which ranked Britney Spears, Big Brother and X Factor as the most searched suggesting Yahoo is a bit more entertainment-frienldy.

The fastest rising search terms in the UK

1) iPlayer

2) Facebook

3) iPhone

4) YouTube

5) Yahoo Mail

6) Large Hadron Collider

7) Obama

8) Friv

9) Cam4

10) Jogos

The most searched terms in the UK

1) Facebook

2) BBC

3) YouTube

4) eBay

5) Games

6) News

7) Hotmail

8) Bebo

9) Yahoo

10) Jobs

Most searched politicians in the UK

1) Gordon Brown

2) David Cameron

3) Barack Obama

4) Tony Blair

5) Sarah Palin

6) John Mccain

7) George Osborne

8) Alistair Darling

9) Boris Johnson

10) Nicolas Sarkozy

The fastest rising queries globally

1) sarah palin

2) beijing 2008

3) facebook login

4) tuenti

5) heath ledger

6) obama

7) nasza klasa

8) wer kennt wen

9) euro 2008

10) jonas brothers