Malaysiakini ranks ninth in the list of the most popular local online searches in 2009, said search engine giant Google.

According to the Google Zeitgeist 2009 for Malaysia , which offers a unique look at the online search activities of Malaysians, the nine other ‘most popular' web searches are foreign sites with the exception of Berita Harian , which is in seventh place.

The report offers an insight into the year's major events which have caught the attention of Malaysian Internet users. The ranking is based on global searches as well as specific searches conducted on google.com.my.

The other most popular searches for 2009 are social networking websites with Facebook, Friendster, Yahoo and Myspace hogging the top four places. Video sharing website Youtube is at No 10.

Last year, Malaysiakini was ranked by Google as number one in its 'fastest rising searches' , presumably because of the 2008 general election.

Epidemics and disaster dominates

It appears that for this year, epidemics and disasters seem to be at the top of the mind for most Internet-savvy Malaysians.

The deadly pandemic H1N1 tops the list of the fastest rising searches.

Also on the list are regional disasters such as the Parma typhoon and earthquakes in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, ‘1malaysia' coined by new Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, took the third spot and ‘15malaysia' - a collection of 15 short films - is at fifth place.

Environmental issues and the economy are also on the mind of many Malaysians with the terms ‘earth hour' and ‘budget 2010' taking the second and fourth spots respectively.

Earth Hour is a campaign to urge global citizens to switch off their electrical appliances for one hour. Its purpose is to create awareness on the need to take action to stop global warming.

Top Malaysian personalities

As for top Malaysian personalities, Google's Zeitgeist 2009 has Elizabeth Wong, the Selangor cabinet member whose semi-nude photos were found online, at the top of the list.

Joining her on the list are Indonesian teen model Manohara Odelia Pinot (No 2), popular TV3 personality Zakiah Anas (No 3), ousted Perak MB Nizar Jamaluddin (No 4), part-time model Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno (No 5), and actress Fasha Sandha (No 6).

Others who made the cut are PAS stalwart Khalid Samad (No 7), newly-minted prime minister Najib (No 8), and embattled MCA president Ong Tee Keat (No 9).

Most popular searches of 2009

1. facebook

2. friendster

3. yahoo

4. myspace

5. yahoo mail

6. gmail

7. berita harian

8. tagged

9. malaysiakini

10. youtube

Fastest rising headlines

1. h1n1

2. earth hour

3. 1malaysia

4. budget 2010

5. 15malaysia

6. khidmat negara 2010

7. super typhoon parma

8. solar eclipse

9. padang indonesia

10. tsunami 2009

Fastest rising newsmakers

1. elizabeth wong

2. manohara odelia pinot

3. zakiah anas

4. nizar

5. kartika

6. fasha sandha

7. khalid samad

8. najib

9. ong tee keat

10. sufiah yusof