Amid Donald Trump‘s changes to the United States government, the Gulf of Mexico has become a major topic in the president’s administration. Within weeks of Trump’s call to change its name, Google Maps has given the public an update. The region is now labeled the Gulf of America, so why did Google change its name after 400 years?
In January, Trump informed reporters from his Mar-A-Lago estate that his administration was “going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Gulf of America — what a beautiful name. And it’s appropriate.” He then claimed that Americans “do most of the work there” and claimed that the Gulf is “ours.”
Below, we’re exploring Google Maps’ update to the Gulf of Mexico.
HAPPY GULF OF AMERICA DAY! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/hFGMBRKh4S
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 9, 2025
What Happened to the Gulf of Mexico?
The Gulf of Mexico has been changed to the Gulf of America for Google Maps viewers in the U.S. The tech company confirmed the update in a statement on February 10, 2025, which read, “In the U.S., the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) has officially updated ‘Gulf of Mexico’ to ‘Gulf of America.’ As we announced two weeks ago and consistent with our longstanding practices, we’ve begun rolling out changes to reflect this update. People using Maps in the U.S. will see ‘Gulf of America,’ and people in Mexico will see ‘Gulf of Mexico.’ Everyone else will see both names.”
Therefore, per Google’s statement, other countries aside from the U.S. and Mexico will see the body of water on Google Maps as “Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America).”
Why Did Google Maps Change the Gulf of Mexico?
We’ve received a few questions about naming within Google Maps. We have a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.
— News from Google (@NewsFromGoogle) January 27, 2025
Google announced in January that it would comply with the government’s decision to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico.
“We’ve received a few questions about naming within Google Maps. We have a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources,” the company tweeted on January 27, 2025, noting in another tweet, “Also longstanding practice: When official names vary between countries, Maps users see their official local name. Everyone in the rest of the world sees both names. That applies here too.”
Who Owns Google?
Alphabet Inc. is the parent company of Google. From 1998 to 2017, Google Inc. was the original name until Alphabet Inc. — one of the five Big Tech companies — took over.
Who Is the CEO of Google?
Since 2015, Sundar Pichai has served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Google.
