Lake Ontario could soon appear under a different name on major mapping services after President Donald Trump issued an executive order to rename it Lake America. The move arrives amid an ongoing trade dispute with Canada and echoes an earlier decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
At present, the lake remains labelled “Lake Ontario” on Google Maps. Whether that changes will depend on how the leading map providers respond to the updated entry in the Geographic Names Information System. When the Gulf of Mexico was renamed, it took several weeks before Apple Maps, Google Maps and Bing Maps all reflected the new designation.
How Map Providers Are Responding
Not every service intends to follow suit. MapQuest has already stated it will not alter the name in its software, posting on X that users are free to name the lake whatever they like, accompanied by a screenshot reading “Lake Are We Doing This Again?” Microsoft, Google and Apple have been approached for comment.
A White House spokesperson declined to say how quickly the administration expects technology companies to comply. Assistant Press Secretary Allison Schuster said the majority of the lake’s volume sits within United States territory and that its name will now reflect its place in America and her heritage.
The Border Complication
A significant difference between this renaming and that of the Gulf of Mexico is that the US-Canada border runs directly through the Great Lake. That introduces additional technical considerations, even if the map apps proceed with the change. The name could, for example, need to switch automatically when a user travels across the border. Apple, Google and Microsoft would be under no obligation to display the new name to customers in Canada.
The change could also affect a long-standing teaching aid. Lake Ontario forms part of the mnemonic “HOMES”, used by students to recall the five Great Lakes. New York Governor Kathy Hochul, criticising the order, noted that the revised acronym could instead spell “SHAME”.
