Map apps switch to Gulf of America: The details
Map apps switch to Gulf of America: The details
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'Gulf of Mexico' is now 'Gulf of America' for US Google Maps users
Google Maps changed the 'Gulf of Mexico' name once it was officially updated in the U.S. Geographic Names System.
Apple Maps joined Google Maps in renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America
Other countries, including Mexico, retain the Gulf of Mexico name
The Associated Press claims it was denied entry to a federal press event for not using the new name for the gulf.
With a few strokes of his pen, President Donald Trump renamed the Gulf of Mexico, at least for those here in the United States.
The change to the Gulf of America will be ignored by Mexico and President Claudia Sheinbaum argued the body of water, shared as well with Cuba, cannot be redesignated without agreement between those countries.
Despite this, the name change has already been made in Google Maps and Apple Maps, at least when viewed by residents of the United States.
How did Trump change the name to Gulf of America?
It was part of an executive order signed on Trump's first day in office dubbed, 'Restoring Names that Honor American Greatness.' It also changed the federal name for the Alaskan mountain known also as Denali, reinstating Mount McKinley. The changes were made in the federal Geographic Names Information System, making them official titles.
More: Trump renames Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America. But is it really that easy?
Don't say Gulf of Mexico?
The Associated Press said it was blocked from covering an official event on Feb. 11 after it referred to the gulf by its former name.
"It is alarming that the Trump administration would punish AP for its independent journalism," AP executive editor Julie Pace wrote in a statement. "Limiting our access to the Oval Office based on the content of AP's speech not only severely impedes the public's access to independent news, it plainly violates the First Amendment."
The unilateral name change of the shared gulf waters was the butt of a joke by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, in which the Democrat announced a joking redesignation of Lake Michigan as Lake Illinois and proposed the annexation of Green Bay, Wisconsin.
What about (Great) 'Lake America?'
Jurisdictions name different landmarks differently, such as a road crossing town, county or village boundaries and taking on an additional name. Look at state Route 65, which also goes by Clover, Main and Ontario streets along its 18.5 mile length.
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS? If Rochester was to rename a nearby shared feature like Lake Ontario, what would you rename it? Let us know at showe@gannett.com.
— Steve Howe reports on weather, climate and the Great Lakes for the Democrat and Chronicle. An RIT graduate, he has covered myriad topics over the years, including public safety, local government, national politics and economic development in New York and Utah.
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