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What used to be called the Gulf of Mexico in the US is now showing up as the Gulf of America on Google Maps for users in the US.
The change comes after an executive order from President Donald Trump, who officially renamed the body of water. Google, for its part, has previously stated that it has “a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.”
Google Maps officially acknowledges the Gulf of America. pic.twitter.com/po7iRXGx8Y
— Michael Buscemi (@TM_Buscemi) February 10, 2025
In a blog post published on Monday (Feb. 10), the tech giant said: “People using Maps in the U.S. will see ‘Gulf of America,’ and people in Mexico will see ‘Gulf of Mexico.’ Everyone else will see both names.”
Trump rolls back name changes
Trump has also brought back the name Mount McKinley for the mountain in Alaska, reversing the 2015 decision by President Obama to rename it Denali as a gesture to the native Alaskan people. But as of Tuesday, that change still hasn’t shown up on Google Maps.
Both of these changes come from an executive order Trump signed shortly after taking office, saying they were meant to “honor American greatness.”
The order took a shot at Obama’s decision to rename Mount McKinley, calling it “an affront to President McKinley’s life, his achievements, and his sacrifice.” It also drew comparisons between McKinley and Trump, pointing out that McKinley “championed tariffs” and was assassinated “in an attack on our Nation’s values and our success.”
The US Federal Aviation Administration also put out a notice on Monday about the geographical name changes. The agency stated: “Please be advised that the FAA is in the process of updating our data and charts to show a name change from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and a name change from Denali to Mount McKinley.”
So far, Apple hasn’t updated Apple Maps with the new names. If you search for “Gulf of America,” it still redirects you to the Gulf of Mexico. Other mapping services, like MapQuest, haven’t made any changes either. Interestingly, Google-owned Waze seems to be in the middle as it shows both names when you search for “Gulf of Mexico,” but if you look up “Gulf of America,” it comes up empty.
Featured image: Google
