From Meghan Markle to the World Cup: Here are the top 10 searches on Google in 2018 (GOOG, GOOGL)

• Google has unveiled its Year in Search for 2018.
• The annual compilation contains the top worldwide Google searches of the year.
• This year's list includes several tragic deaths as well as the World Cup.

As 2018 draws to a close, Google is looking back on the top searches of the year.

Google narrows down the top-trending searches in the world over the past 12 months, terms that had the highest spike in traffic this year compared with 2017. These are not necessarily the terms that were searched the most often.

The year has been rife with tragedy — with the high-profile deaths of Anthony Bourdain, Kate Spade, and several others. But 2018 also brought a royal wedding and an exciting World Cup.

Here are the top-trending Google searches of 2018:

SEE ALSO: Google just announced it's shutting down its Allo messaging app for good. Here are 18 other Google products that bombed, died, or disappeared

10. Kate Spade

In June, the fashion designer Kate Spade was found dead at 55 in her New York City apartment, apparently of suicide.

Spade launched her namesake brand in 1993, a year before she married her husband, Andy. Over the following years, the couple ran the business together out of their apartment in New York's Tribeca neighborhood, transforming it into a $27 million business by 1998.

The couple eventually sold the business to Neiman Marcus in 2006, but their love of handbags didn't end there. Years later, after the birth of their daughter, they made a second foray into fashion, launching Frances Valentine, a handbag-and-shoe company, in 2015.

• Read more about the life of Kate Spade:
• Here's the story behind the rise of Kate Spade's handbag empire
• Kate Spade's close friend and business partner says the late designer left 4 seasons of completed work for her handbag company
• Kate Spade was detached from her namesake brand at the time of her death, but nostalgic shoppers have flocked to its stores. Here's what the brand's future could be.

9. Stephen Hawking

In March, Stephen Hawking died at the age of 76.

The theoretical physicist made several discoveries that transformed the way scientists viewed black holes and the universe. Though he had Lou Gehrig's disease — the neurodegenerative malady also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS — which impaired his motor functions, he went on to become a mathematics professor and eventually the director of research at the University of Cambridge's Center for Theoretical Cosmology.

Hawking was also known to bridge the gap on complicated subjects by infusing humor and wit during his lectures. His character and personality produced several anecdotes and references in pop culture, including appearances on various TV shows.

• Read more about Hawking's life and career:
• 15 of the most remarkable and memorable things Stephen Hawking ever said
• A brief history of Stephen Hawking's time on planet Earth in one chart
• Stephen Hawking was only expected to live a few years after being diagnosed with ALS at age 21 — here's what the disease is

8. XXXTentacion

In June, the rapper XXXTentacion was shot dead in his car after leaving a motorcycle dealer in South Florida.

At the time of his death, XXXTentacion — whose real name was Jahseh Onfroy — was awaiting trial for a 2016 domestic-abuse case. He faced charges of aggravated battery of his pregnant girlfriend, domestic battery by strangulation, false imprisonment, and witness tampering.

Onfroy rose to fame off of his 2016 single "Look at Me!" His debut studio album, "17," reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200 album chart and was certified gold in 2017. Onfroy's second studio album, "?," debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart in March.

By August, four suspects accused of killing Onfroy had been taken into custody.

See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Contributer : Tech Insider https://ift.tt/2LgCXhO

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