Google published its 'Year in Search' for 2023 on Monday: an annual series of lists showing the most trending keywords of the past year per country.
While it was Russia's invasion of Ukraine that dominated search results in Belgium in 2022, this year the conflict between Israel and Hamas was the topic with the most searches in the country (with 'Israel' being the most Googled keyword, and 'Hamas' in fourth place). The recent terror attack in Brussels on 16 October came in second, followed by the Indian lunar mission Chandrayaan-3. The launch of Belgium's state bonds rounded out the top 5.
Humanitarian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele, who was released in May after 455 days in detention in Iran, was one of Belgium's most Googled people this year. However, he was not ahead of former VRT radio host Sven Pichal (suspected of possessing and sharing images of sexual violence against minors), and Flemish actor Boris Van Severen.
In fourth place is the former leader of the Flemish socialist Vooruit party, Conner Rousseau, who was involved in a number of scandals this year before finally stepping down last month. In fifth place is Jeroen Leenders, a Flemish comedian who gained a lot of media attention following his appearance on a well-known television quiz.
Sports and culture
Among the sports personalities, the first is Luca Brecel, the Belgian who became world snooker champion in May. In second place is Belgian cyclist Lotte Kopecky, who became world road cycling champion and came second in the latest Tour de France. England footballer David Beckham, who had his own series on Netflix this year, completes the podium.
The Tour de France, Roland Garros, the Rugby World Cup and the Women's World Cup attracted the most searches for sporting events.
The film Oppenheimer, released this summer, took first place in the category of films, series and TV programmes this year. Its summer rival, Barbie, came third, behind the yearly Eurovision Song Contest.
The winner of the contest, Sweden's Loreen, is one of the most Googled musical artists in Belgium this year. International stars Beyoncé and Harry Styles, who both stopped off in Belgium on their respective world tours, also featured in the rankings.
Actor Matthew Perry, best known for his role as Chandler in the series Friends and who died unexpectedly at the end of October, was the most Googled deceased person this year.
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Finally, one of the most frequently asked questions to the search engine was about the one-year state bonds launched last summer: "How do I buy state bonds?"
Among the many questions Google had to answer were "what is PFAS?" (a reference to water pollution by these almost non-biodegradable substances), and "what is EVRAS?" (the name of the programme on education in relationships, emotions and sexuality in French-speaking schools).
Belgians also asked "Why were chainsaws invented?", "Why is the sky blue?", "How did Mickey Mouse die?" and "How do you cheat at Scrabble?"
