Google Maps Changing Name Of Gulf Of Mexico, Other Landmarks

by Laurie Sullivan , January 28, 2025

Google explained in a post on X that it has a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources. This most recent name change will affect the Gulf of Mexico and Mount McKinley.

The company said it is complying with President Donald Trump’s executive action that renamed the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. The name change will appear that way in Google Maps.

Google will also change the name of Mount McKinley, the highest peak in the U.S., from Denali. Former President Barack Obama had renamed the Alaska landmark to Denali in 2015 as a nod to the region’s native population.

“It is in the national interest to promote the extraordinary heritage of our Nation and ensure future generations of American citizens celebrate the legacy of our American heroes,” the executive order said.

Microsoft Bing or other mapping platforms did not say if they would also change the names.

Google Maps also reclassified the U.S. as a “sensitive country,” a designation it reserves for states with strict governments and border disputes, reports CNBC.

It shows the challenges tech companies face in navigating substantial changes. Other sensitive countries with regard to Google Maps include China, Russia, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq.

google, government, maps, politics

3 comments about "Google Maps Changing Name Of Gulf Of Mexico, Other Landmarks".

Check to receive email when comments are posted.

Joshua Chasin from KnotSimpler, January 29, 2025 at 1:04 p.m.
My uncle and I did a trip to Alaska in 1994, and I'm pretty sure it was called Denali then. I'm surprised to read that Obama made this name change. And then, as now, it was in Denali National Park.
Reply

Laurie Sullivan from lauriesullivan, January 29, 2025 at 1:14 p.m.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denali%E2%80%93Mount_McKinley_naming_dispute

Laurie Sullivan from lauriesullivan, January 29, 2025 at 1:18 p.m.

The link is not working for me, but it explains how the name change came about.

The name of the highest mountain in North America became a subject of dispute in 1975, when the Alaska Legislature asked the U.S. federal government to officially change its name from "Mount McKinley" to "Denali". The mountain had been unofficially named Mount McKinley in 1896 by a gold prospector and officially by the federal government in 1917 to commemorate William McKinley, who was President of the United States from 1897 until his assassination in 1901.