Google Maps has changed the name of Lake Ontario to “Lake America” for users in the United States, following President Donald Trump’s executive order rebranding the lake. The move has prompted backlash from critics. In a Saturday blog post, Google explained that U.S. users would see “Lake America” displayed over the Great Lake, which straddles the U.S.-Canada border.
Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) has formally changed the name for ‘Lake Ontario’ to ‘Lake America’ in the United States,” Google said. The update came two days after Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to use the new name for the lake in official documents and records. While the president can direct how the federal government refers to geographic features, he cannot compel foreign nations, private entities or even U.S. states to follow his lead.
The White House and a number of Trump’s supporters applauded Google’s move. But critics accused the Silicon Valley company of bending to pressure from the Trump administration. He noted that Apple Maps still identifies the body of water as Lake Ontario.
The Independent has contacted Google for comment. Trump’s executive order — which echoes a similar move last year renaming the Gulf of Mexico — triggered a response from Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on social media. Their trading relationships, their foreign policies, their national monuments, their hydronyms,” Carney wrote in a Thursday X post.
Last Saturday, the U.S. imposed 50 percent tariffs on about $20 billion in Canadian exports after last-minute talks between Washington and Ottawa broke down. Canadian officials, who likened the move to an act of war, responded by slapping retaliatory levies of up to 50 percent on a range of U.S. goods. Relations between the two nations have deteriorated since Trump took office, due in part to the Republican president’s numerous tariffs and his claim that Canada should become the “51st state.” Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
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