Only 1 K-Pop Idol Made It To Naver’s Top Monthly Searches Of 2020—Here’s The Full List
Content Warning
Often referred to as “the Google of South Korea”, Naver is the go-to search portal and online platform for Koreans. Now, their list of the most popular monthly searches of 2020 is in—and only one K-Pop idol made the list.
1. January 2020
In January 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “Crash Landing on You”—referring to tvN‘s Crash Landing on You. The drama began airing worldwide in mid-December 2019, and quickly became the third highest-rated K-Drama in Korean television history.
Meanwhile, the top Naver search on PC for January 2020 was “simplified year-end tax settlement service”. At the beginning of the year, the South Korean government implemented a new simplified service to filing taxes.
2. February 2020
In February 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “Itaewon Class”—referring to JTBC‘s Itaewon Class. Premiering on the last day of January, Itaewon Class became the seventh highest-rated K-Drama of all time in Korea.
Meanwhile, the top Naver search on PC for February 2020 was “Shincheonji”—referring to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus. In February, the Christian cult became the center of controversy in Korea after a huge COVID-19 outbreak was attributed to its members.
3. March 2020
In March 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “publicly-distributed face mask”. To control the rapidly decreasing mask supply during the COVID-19 pandemic, the government began supplying masks to residents in March.
Meanwhile, the top Naver search on PC for March 2020 was “KOSPI”. KOSPI is an index of all the stocks traded on the Korean Stock Exchange. In March, the index plummeted to its lowest benchmark in 11 years.
4. April 2020
In April 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “The World of the Married”—referring to JTBC’s The World of the Married. This wildly popular K-Drama is now the no.1 highest-rated drama in Korean history, surpassing previous title holder JTBC’s SKY Castle.
Meanwhile, the top Naver search on PC for April 2020 was “Kim Jong Un”. Kim Jong Un is the Supreme Leader of North Korea. In April, rumors surfaced that he may have passed away or contracted a serious illness.
5. May 2020
In May 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “The World of the Married”—referring to JTBC’s The World of the Married again. Meanwhile, the top Naver search on PC for May 2020 was “emergency disaster relief funds”. That month, the government began distributing payments of 400,000 to 1 million to 80% of Korean households, similar to the US stimulus check program.
6. June 2020
In June 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “Celltrion”. Celltrion is a Korean biopharmaceutical company. In June, the purchased 18 drugs from failing Japanese company Takeda Pharmaceutical and began launching COVID-19 antigen and antibody testing kits.
Meanwhile, the top Naver search on PC for June 2020 was “translator”, referring to machine translation services like Google Translate and Naver Papago.
7. July 2020
In July 2020, the top Naver search on both mobile and PC was “Park Won Soon”. Park Won Soon was the former and longest-serving mayor of Seoul. In July, the 64-year-old was reported missing by his daughter, and was later found to have died by presumable suicide. One day before his disappearance, his former secretary accused him of physical and digital sexual harassment over a period of four years.
8. August 2020
In August 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “weather alert”, while the top search on PC was “typhoon”. That month, the deadly Typhoon Bavi swept through South Korea and neighboring countries. Sadly, one Jeju Island resident lost their life. More than 100 reports of damage were reported across the city, with losses in Jeju reaching ₩484 million KRW (about $443,000 USD).
9. September 2020
In September 2020, the top Naver search on mobile was “typhoon” again, after Typhoon Maysak and Typhon Haishen both hit the country.
Meanwhile, the top Naver search on PC for September 2020 was “word counter”.
10. October 2020
In October 2020, the top Naver search on both mobile and PC was “Irene”—referring to Red Velvet‘s Irene. On October 22, Irene became embroiled in a gapjil (power abuse) scandal after a stylist accused her of rude and unacceptable behavior during a schedule. Following the accusation and Irene’s subsequent apology, Korean media reported on several copycat accusations as well as numerous staff accounts defending Irene’s character.
11. November 2020
In November 2020, the top Naver search on both mobile and PC was “Park Ji Sun”. Sadly, beloved comedienne Park Ji Sun passed away last month in a double suicide alongside her mother.
Share This Post
