---
title: "Google Maps to rename 'Gulf of Mexico' to 'Gulf of America' for US users"
description: "WASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Google Maps will change the name of \"Gulf of Mexico\" to \"Gulf of America\" once it is officially updated in the U.S. Geographic Names System, Google said in an X post on Monday."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "Newsdeck"
author: "Reuters"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/reuters/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-01-28-google-maps-to-rename-gulf-of-mexico-to-gulf-of-america-for-us-users/"
published: "2025-01-28T04:37:50"
updated: "2025-01-28T04:37:52"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 299
---

# Google Maps to rename 'Gulf of Mexico' to 'Gulf of America' for US users

> WASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Google Maps will change the name of "Gulf of Mexico" to "Gulf of America" once it is officially updated in the U.S. Geographic Names System, Google said in an X post on Monday.

By Reuters · Published 28 January 2025, 06:37 SAST · Updated 28 January 2025, 06:37 SAST

## Key points
- In a bid to make America’s geography great again, the Trump administration has officially rebranded the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, while the tallest mountain in North America will once again don the name Mount McKinley, leaving Mexico to ponder why its waters are suddenly feeling less neighborly.
- The Gulf of Mexico is officially renamed the Gulf of America in the U.S., while Mexico retains the original name.
- The Trump administration's Interior Department also reverted Denali to Mount McKinley, fulfilling a campaign promise.
- Google Maps will reflect these changes, displaying both names for the Gulf and the mountain in different regions.
- Naming disputes are common; Google employs locale-based labeling for contentious locations, as seen with the Sea of Japan and Persian Gulf.

## Content

The change will be visible in the U.S., but the name will remain "Gulf of Mexico" in Mexico. Outside of the two countries, users will see both names on Google Maps.

The Trump administration's Interior Department said on Friday [it had officially changed the name](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL5N3OK1W7&linkedFromStory=true) of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, and the Alaskan peak Denali, the tallest mountain in North America, to Mount McKinley.

Google Maps, which is owned by Alphabet's GOOGL.O Google, will make a similar change with Mount McKinley.

President Donald Trump ordered the name changes as part of a flurry of executive actions hours after taking office on Jan. 20, making good on a campaign promise.

"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," the Interior Department said in a statement last week.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum earlier this month jokingly suggested North America, including the United States, be renamed "[Mexican America](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AS0N3MI01H&linkedFromStory=true)" - a historic name used on an early map of the region.

Reached for comment, a Google spokesperson referred Reuters to the company's X post.

Google has applied the same locale-based labeling conventions to other locations subject to naming disputes.

Outside of Japan and South Korea, the body of water bordering both nations is listed as the "Sea of Japan (East Sea)."

In 2012, Iran [threatened](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3ABRE88M0AO&linkedFromStory=true) to take legal action against Google over its decision to drop the term "Persian Gulf" from its Google Maps and leaving the waterway between Iran and the Arabian peninsula nameless. The body of water is now labeled "Persian Gulf (Arabian Gulf)" in other countries.

(Reporting by David Shepardson and Kenrick Cai; Editing by Leslie Adler)