Google Maps changes name of Gulf of Mexico after Trump’s executive order
Donald Trump previously signed an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico.
But Mexico’s president disputed the legality of the move.
Tuesday 11 February 2025 09:44, UK
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Google Maps has changed the name of the Gulf of Mexico, to the Gulf of America,
after Donald Trump passed an executive order renaming the body of water in the
eyes of the US.
The US-based company previously said it would change the name of the oceanic
basin once it was updated in the US Geographic Names System (USGS).
Mexico asked Google not to do so
[https://news.sky.com/story/mexico-asks-google-not-to-follow-trumps-gulf-of-america-name-change-13299804],
claiming the US had no legal right to change the Gulf’s name under the United
Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
This says that a country’s territorial sea – which falls under the jurisdiction
of a state – only extends up to 12 nautical miles (22km) from its coastline.
The rest of the Gulf is shared under conditions between the US, Mexico, and
Cuba.
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For users of Google in the US, if they now scroll over the Gulf, they will find
it renamed the Gulf of America.
Users elsewhere, for example in the UK, are met with the Gulf carrying both
names: “Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America)”.
Whereas, users in Mexico will still see the water body called the Gulf of
Mexico.
It was one of the very first orders signed by the president to rename the Gulf,
and then on 9 February, while flying over it, he signed a second order declaring
the first-ever Gulf of America Day.
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“In the US, the Geographic Names Information System has officially updated ‘Gulf
of Mexico’ to ‘Gulf of America’,” Google said in a statement.
“As we announced two weeks ago and consistent with our longstanding practices,
we’ve begun rolling out changes to reflect this update,” Google said in a
statement.
Celebrating the renaming, Mr Trump took to Truth Social to post an image of the
Gulf of America, saying: “GULF OF AMERICA!”
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‘It cannot apply’
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum previously told reporters at the end of last
month that: “If a country wants to change the designation of something in the
sea, it would only apply up to 12 nautical miles,” CNN reported.
“It cannot apply to the rest, in this case, the Gulf of Mexico,” she added.
Ms Sheinbaum also previously joked that she was considering renaming the
continent of North America “Mexican America” in her country.
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She said: “We ask that when you put Mexican America in the search engine, the
map appears that we presented.”
A founding document from 1814, which preceded Mexico’s constitution, used that
name for the continent.
