2011 through the eyes of Twitter – leading topics of the year

2011 in review

Each year, Twitter closes out the calendar year with reflections on the top stories, trends and celebrities who have joined Twitter and this year is no different. What we are pleased with this year is that at least some of the trending topics are more than Bieber or GaGa, rather global politics and civil unrest topped the interest charts.

According to Twitter, #Egypt was the hottest hashtag, Mubarak’s resignation topped the news stories, and Cairo was the top story, revealing that Twitter has become a legitimate communication tool rather than just a status updating phenomena. Below are the top stories and hashtags in each category.

Top hashtags on Twitter in 2011

1. #egypt
2. #tigerblood
3. #threewordstoliveby
4. #idontunderstandwhy
5. #japan
6. #improudtosay
7. #superbowl
8. #jan25

Top world news stories on Twitter

1. Mubarak’s resignation
2. Raid on Osama bin Laden
3. Japanese earthquake and Fukushima nuclear disaster
4. Shooting of Gabrielle Giffords
5. Gaddafi’s death
6. Swine Flu outbreak

Top cities and countries on Twitter this year

1. Cairo
2. Egypt
3. Japan
4. Libya
5. Tokyo
6. Dallas
7. Vancouver
8. Hawaii
9. Joplin
10. Austin

Top tech topics on Twitter in 2011

1. Mac App Store
2. Sony NGP
3. Guitar Hero
4. Mozilla Firefox
5. Duke Nukem Forever
6. iPad
7. iPhone
8. Nintendo 3DS
9. Mortal Kombat
10. iPod