Here are the top-trending Google searches among Philadelphians so far this year

Every December, Google releases its “year in search” — the phrases, places, events or people for which the search engine sees a spike of inquiries throughout the previous year.

Last year, a few local figures topped the national list, when Philly native Kevin Hart and Phillies player Bryce Harper appeared. But in 2020, things look a little different.

The coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 election and celebrity deaths all appeared as top trending searches nationally throughout the year, and similar themes emerged in Philadelphia.

Philly’s top trending searches include: “election results,” “coronavirus,” “Kobe Bryant,” “Flyers” (or often, “Fliers”), “Zoom” and “Naya Rivera,” a Google spokesperson said. (There’s a lot going on in the world, but of course we couldn’t get through a year without checking in on our favorite orange gremlin’s team.)

These match the national trending terms, which also include “coronavirus update,” “coronavirus symptoms,” “who is winning the election,” “Chadwick Boseman” and “Playstation 5.” Top trending people nationally include President-elect Joe Biden, and the term “unemployment” is seventh on the national news list.

But the year 2020 was also the year of “why,” Google reported.

Users searched for things like “Why is it called COVID-19?” and “Why is mental health important?” Google also reports that the term “protests” spikes in June and the word “meditation” was searched worldwide.

The term “how to help” was also searched more than ever, within searches like “how to help Australia fires,” and “how to help Black Lives Matter.”

“Despite everything happening around us, we were as inquisitive as ever before, asking questions like ‘why do people dream?’ and ‘why is Mars red?'” Google said in its year-end statement. “We stayed optimistic and looked for creative ways to spend our time: This year searches for ‘sourdough bread recipe’ hit an all-time high.”

Take a look at Google’s Year in Search film below, and check out the trends for yourself here.