Google Officially Renames the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America”

Google incorporates official geographic names into its mapping services from the Geographic Names Information System, which is overseen by the US Geological Survey. The government’s larger effort to rename geographic features in accordance with national policies includes this update.

For users in the United States, Google Maps has changed the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America in accordance with an executive order issued by former President Donald Trump. Users from other countries will see both names displayed, but users from Mexico will see the original name.

Another significant alteration included in the same presidential order is the renaming of Mount Denali in Alaska to Mount McKinley. Google has promised that as soon as the name system update is finished, this modification would be put into effect.

Trump’s Name-change Executive Order

Trump instructs the US Secretary of the Interior to formally alter the name within 30 days in his executive order (Executive Order 14172), “Restoring Names That Honour American Greatness.” Additionally, Trump declared February 9 to be “Gulf of America Day.”

Why the Gulf of Mexico was Renamed by Trump

As the plane flew over the Gulf, Trump underlined the significance of the renaming while travelling on Air Force One from Palm Beach, Florida to New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX. “It is only fitting that we recognise this historic moment and the renaming of the Gulf of America as my administration restores American pride in our nation’s history and accomplishments,” he stated, as reported by Fox5 DC.

Historical Precedents

The notion of renaming the Gulf of Mexico has been proposed before. Although the bill was never passed, a Mississippi lawmaker suggested renaming the area of the gulf that borders the state’s coastline the “Gulf of America” in 2012. The comedian Stephen Colbert also made a joke in 2010 about renaming the gulf after the Deepwater Horizon oil leak, stating, “We broke it, we bought it.”

A vital body of water for both the United States and Mexico, the Gulf of Mexico is sometimes referred to as America’s “Third Coast” because of the length of the U.S. coastline.