Nelson Mandela, an international symbol of strength and peace, was the world’s top Google search in 2013 — a choice that reflected the spirit of the times, Google said.

Google released its top-trending 2013 searches Tuesday, VoiceofAmerica reports.

Global search interest was already high this year for the former president of South Africa and anti-apartheid icon, Google reports. After his Dec. 5 death, people from around the world wanted to learn more about Madiba and his legacy as their leaders and heads of state traveled to South Africa for one of the largest memorials of its kind in recent memory.

Google’s annual Year-End Zeitgeist (“spirit of the times”) reflects on the people, places, and moments that most captured the world’s attention throughout the year.

This year marks “our most global Zeitgeist to date,” according to Googleblog. The list was compiled from 1,000-plus top 10 lists in categories including trending people, most-searched events and top-trending searches from 72 countries.

The No. 2 search was Paul Walker, star of the “Fast and Furious” movies, who died in a car crash earlier this month.

Technology was a popular theme occupying three of the top 10 spots with iPhone 5s coming at No. 3, Samsung Galaxy s4 at No. 8 and PlayStation 4 at No. 9.

Other big stories in the top 10 included the Boston Marathon bombing (No. 6) and
the birth of the royal baby in England (No. 7).

More than 1.7 million versions of the “Harlem Shake” (No. 5 spot) were uploaded to Google’s YouTube platform.

Google started its annual Year-End Zeitgeist in 2001.

Here’s who/what made the list for 2013:

1. Nelson Mandela
2. Paul Walker
3. iPhone 5s
4. Cory Monteith
5. Harlem Shake
6. Boston Marathon
7. Royal Baby
8. Samsung Galaxy s4
9. PlayStation 4
10. North Korea