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While “twerking” and “Harlem Shake” were among the top search terms in the US, our neighbors to the west were busy Googling other, more wholesome words. Let’s take a look at the top trending search terms in Japan this year!

1) 台風 (Typhoon) 

TyphoonImage: Wikipedia

Japan is a country that is battered by typhoons every year without fail. This past year was a particularly busy one, prompting the Japan Times to dub 2013, “the year of the typhoon.”

2) パズドラ (Puzzle & Dragons)

Puzzle and DragonsImage: Wikipedia

Puzzle & Dragons is the number one selling free-to-play mobile game in Japan and is backed by GungHo Online Entertainment, a Japanese video game corporation with a market capitalization above that of Nintendo’s. No wonder it was the second highest trending search term.

3) あまちゃん (Ama-chan)

CD_H1_BImage: Pen Tsuyoshi

Japanese television drama, Ama-chan, debuted on April 1 of this year and was a ratings success for broadcaster, NHK. Considered a social phenomenon, the drama follows a young girl who moves to the Tohoku region to become a diver.

4) 半沢直樹 (Hanzawa Naoki)

半沢直樹Image: AA Service

Another successful television drama, Hanazawa Naoki, follows a rich banker at Tokyo Chuo Bank as he climbs his way to the top. Every week the show received consistently high ratings and the final episode reached 42.2% in the Kanto region, the highest for a drama in the past 25 years.

5) iPhone 5s

IPhone_5sImage: Wikipedia

Although the iPhone craze is tapering off and each new release sees fewer and fewer Apple fans in Japan camping out for hours, and in some cases days, the iPhone 5s still generated enough buzz to land it’s way in the fifth spot.

6) 進撃の巨人 (Attack on Titan)

Attack on Titan Image: Wikipedia

It seemed every other day was filled with new news of manga turned hit television series, Attack on Titan. From weird products to a live-action movie announcement, 2013 was definitely the year of Attack on Titan.

7) wbc

799px-TokyoDome_GiantsFightersImage: Wikipedia

Short for Word Baseball Classic, “wbc” was the seventh trending term of 2013. Not only was Japan a host country for the 2013 WBC, the Japanese team took third place!

8) 艦これ (Kantai Collection)

Kantai CollectionImage: Wikipedia

Kantai Collection is a free-to-play online social card game that was released on April 23 of this year. Centered around moe anthropomorphisms of WWII naval warships, it’s definitely a unique game for any fans of cute girls…or old battleships.

9) ラストシンデレラ (Last Cinderella)

Last CinderellaImage: Amazon

The third and final television drama on the list, Last Cinderella aired on Fuji Television in April of this year. The story follows a 39-year-old single woman in a relationship with a much younger man. Full of sex and scandal, Last Cinderella was a hot topic in 2013.

10) 風立ちぬ (The Wind Rises)

The Wind Rises Image: Taisei Blog

Hayao Miyazaki’s last film, The Wind Rises, finishes off our list at number 10. Even though it received plenty of criticism from various groups in Japan, it was received positively by the public with a plot so moving, it brought many to tears.

Source: IT Media