Google has announced that it will update the names of the Gulf of Mexico and Denali, Alaska’s highest mountain, in Google Maps, aligning with recent changes mandated by the Trump administration as reflected in a federal mapping database.
This decision comes in light of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump last week, which redefined names of several significant American landmarks. Following this order, the U.S. Department of the Interior confirmed that the name changes are now official, stating that national geographic authorities are working “swiftly” to implement Trump’s directive.
“We have a long-standing policy of updating name changes as they appear in official government resources,” Google shared in a tweet on X.
In Google Maps, the Gulf of Mexico will soon be referred to as the “Gulf of America” for users within the United States, a newly established name introduced by the Trump administration.
Denali, the tallest peak in North America, will revert to its former name, Mount McKinley, for all international users in Google Maps. Originally named Mount McKinley in 1917 to honor the 25th president, William McKinley, the peak was designated Denali by the Obama administration in 2015. The Trump administration is reinstating the original name, despite some discontent voiced by certain Alaskan senators.
However, not all Google Maps users around the globe will see the Gulf of America.
Google Maps displays contested geographical names based on each country’s official designation for its citizens, as noted in a post from the company. Hence, users in Mexico will continue to see the Gulf of Mexico, where President Claudia Sheinbaum has ridiculed Trump’s proposals for renaming the body of water. In other regions, Google Maps will simultaneously display both the American and Mexican names for the gulf.
Google has stated that these updates will take effect once the official U.S. naming database, the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), is revised. Although the U.S. Interior Department indicated that the names Gulf of America and Mount McKinley are official as of Friday, GNIS still registered both features as the Gulf of Mexico and Denali as of Monday evening.
Compiled by Techarena.au.
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