Google Maps started to display the body of previously known water in the United States as a Gulf of Mexico as a Gulf of America for US users. The change follows an executive order of US President Donald Trump, who renamed the area. Google said it has “a longtime practice to apply name changes when they are updated to official government sources.”
Name changes are part of an executive action that Trump signed shortly after taking office, stating that the changes “honor American greatness.”
For US users, the map will show “Gulf of America”, while users in Mexico will continue to see “Gulf of Mexico”. For everyone else, both names will be displayed.
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In addition, Google announced last month that it would also change the name of Mount McKinley, the highest peak in the US, back to Denali, following the order of Trump. Former President Barack Obama had renamed Alaska’s milestone for Denali in 2015, in honor of the region’s native population. However, this change has not yet been implemented on Google Maps until this Tuesday (11).
The Order criticized Obama’s decision to rename McKinley as “an affront to President McKinley’s life, achievements, and sacrifice.” The decision also draws parallels between Trump and McKinley, noting that McKinley “defended tariffs” and was murdered “in an attack on the values and success of our nation.”
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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also issued a warning on Monday about geographic name changes. The US coastal guard, responsible for patrolling the country’s sea coastal waters, also began incorporating America’s new Gulf nomenclature into its public notices.
