Google Maps will change Gulf of ‘Mexico’ to ‘America’ in US
Google Maps will change the name of the “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America” once it’s officially updated in the U.S. Geographic Names System.
Google Maps will soon show a Gulf of America and Mount McKinley in compliance with President Donald Trump’s executive order and pending federal approval.
On day one in office, Trump signed an executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America and Alaska’s Mount Denali to Mount McKinley.
In a social media post on X, Google said they had “a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.”
The names will be updated once the Geographic Names Information System, a government database of names and location data, is updated. In the meantime it continues to appear as Gulf of Mexico and Mount Denali only.
However, once the change occurs, the name change on Google Maps would be visible only in the U.S. Outside of the U.S., users will see both the Gulf of Mexico and Gulf of America, according to Reuters.
Trump said in his executive order “It is in the national interest to promote the extraordinary heritage of our Nation and ensure future generations of American citizens celebrate the legacy of our American heroes.”
Here’s what to know about the name changes and when they will take effect.
When will Google Maps show the Gulf of America and Mount McKinley?
In the executive order signed Jan. 20, Trump said the Secretary of the Interior shall rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America within 30 days.
“The Secretary shall subsequently update the GNIS to reflect the renaming of the Gulf and remove all references to the Gulf of Mexico from the GNIS,” the order said. GNIS stands for Geographic Names Information System.
This would indicate a name change on or before Feb. 19.
According to Google’s social media post on X, they will change the name once it is officially updated in the U.S. Geographic Names System.
In a statement issued Friday, Jan. 24, the U.S. Department of Interior said it was “proud to announce the implementation of name restorations that honor the legacy of American greatness, with efforts already underway.
“As directed by the President, the Gulf of Mexico will now officially be known as the Gulf of America and North America’s highest peak will once again bear the name Mount McKinley.
Alaska’s Mount Denali was previously Mount McKinley until Former President Barak Obama issued the order to change it in 2015. And prior to the 100 years it was known as Mount McKinley, it was referred to as ‘Denali’ in reference to its native population, Koyukon Athabaskans, that inhabited the area for centuries before then, according to the National Park Service.
Maria Francis is a Pennsylvania-based journalist with the Mid-Atlantic Connect Team.
