From celebrities to entrepreneurs, here you will find a list of who’s who on Baidu’s top search results for people in 2015. You can also find the top search events of the year on China’s biggest search engine here.
1. Bi Fujian
A popular China Central Television (CCTV) host who was suspended from his post in April, after a videotape of him criticizing Chairman Mao surfaced and went viral online.
2. Jin Xing
The transexual modern dancer known for her talk show “the Jin Xing Show”, or the Chinese version of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, received wide popularity for openly criticizing other Chinese celebrities.
3. Wang Sicong
The son of China’s richest man, Wang Jianlin, the Chairman of Wanda Group. The younger Wang has received the nickname “The People’s Husband” stemming from his wealth, charm and legions of female fans.
4. Ye Liangchen
He became an overnight Internet celebrity after creating a social media ruckus with the manager of a dorm where his girlfriend lived in Beijing.
5. Hannah Quinlivan (Kun Ling)
The Taiwanese model and actress of Australian and Korean descent married famous Taiwanese pop singer Jay Chou in England in January. She gave birth to a daughter in July.
6. Liu Wen
The first model of East Asian descent to walk the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in 2009, teamed up with South Korean singer Siwon Choi, in a Chinese spin-off of the South Korean variety show “We Got Married” in April 2015.
7. Zhang Zeitian
It’s a cinderella tale for the 22-year-old who got hitched with the founder of e-commerce giant JD.com, Richard Liu, in August. The couple, with an age difference of 19 years, became a hot topic among Chinese netizens.
8. Jack Ma
The outspoken founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group was the first mainland Chinese entrepreneur to appear on the cover of Forbes.
9. Ning Zetao
Ning, a Chinese competitive swimmer, won a gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle at the 2015 World Aquatics Championships at Kazan, Russia. It’s a milestone for Chinese swimming history as no Asian athlete had made the finals or won medals at the FINA (International Swimming Federation) world championships prior to Ning’s victory.
10. Chai Jing
The Chinese journalist’s self-financed documentary Under the Dome had garnered over 150 million views in China as of March 3, sparking widespread discussion about pollution and environmental policy in China.