2015: The Year on Twitter

2015 globally was the year of #TheDress debate and the year @KingSalman succeeded late King Abdullah back in early 2015. Saudi Arabia saw a number of historic changes that set the country’s #السعودية on a different course with a promising future. Also 2015 was the year that @AlNassrFC won the Abdulatif Al Jameel (ALJ) League for professional football  for the second year in a row. 

To mark the end of the year, we’ve delved into our data to create our annual ‘Year on Twitter’ roundup. Here are some of the most influential moments and popular Tweets from Saudi Arabia and around the world on 2015.twitter.com.

Top Trends in KSA

We looked at the top KSA events that created the biggest trends in KSA Twitter traffic in 2015. Results revealed Saudi Arabia to be a nation of TV and Football fans, with Twitter traffic spiking during Abdulatif Al Jameel league # دوري_عبداللطيف_جميل football matches, especially during the semifinal match between @AlNassrFC and @Alhilal_FC. Internationally, matches between @FCBarcelona and @realmadrid (ElClasico) also spiked Twitter conversation in Saudi Arabia.

Ramadan is the month of TV in Saudi Arabia with @KhwatirTV and Ahmad Al Shugairi @Shugairi ranking first among all anticipated series and hosts during the holy month.Meanwhile, updates from KSA’s Royal family, Cabinet and government entities continued to drive Saudi conversation and traffic on Twitter, with trending Hashtags constantly circulating the social platform.

Below are some of the top trending Hashtags in KSA per category:  

People

1. King Salman - #الملك_سلمان
2. King Abdullah - #الملك_عبدالله
3. Saleh Al Mghamsy - #صالح_المغامسي
4. Yaser Quahtani - #ياسر_القحطاني
5. Saeed Shahrani - #سعيد_الشهراني 

Sports

1. Al Hilal Football Team -  #الهلال
2. Al Nassr Football Team - #النصر
3. Real Madrid - #ريال_مدريد
4. Barcelona - #برشلونة
5. Abdulatif Al Jameel league - # دوري_عبداللطيف_جميل

TV

1. Khwatir - #خواطر
2. Al Arabiya Breaking News - #العربية_عاجل
3. Sada Al Malaed - #صدى_الملاعب
4. Action Ya Dawri - #اكشن_يا_دوري
5. Arabs Got Talent

Year of the Emoji

2014 was the year of the Selfie when Ellen DeGeneres Oscar Selfie went viral and became the most Retweeted Tweet ever. This year 2015 is described as the year of the Emoji with