Google Maps Changes Lake Ontario to ‘Lake America’ for U.S. Users After Trump’s Executive Order

Google Maps has officially changed Lake Ontario to ‘Lake America’ for users in the U.S. following an executive order signed by Donald Trump on Aug. 27 amid U.S.-Canada trade tensions.

Win McNamee/Getty; Google Maps

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Google Maps has officially changed Lake Ontario to Lake America for users in the U.S.

The name change follows an executive order signed by Donald Trump on Aug. 27 amid U.S.-Canada trade tensions

Trump criticized Canada’s trade practices and defense contributions, claiming the name change reflects America’s stance, while Canadian officials and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul publicly opposed the change, citing historical and cultural significance

Days after President Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America, the name change has appeared for Google Maps users in the United States.

“The U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) has formally changed the name for ‘Lake Ontario’ to ‘Lake America’ in the United States,” Google said in a statement on Saturday, Aug. 29.

“Since we update Google Maps to reflect name changes in official government sources, which is GNIS for the U.S., people using Maps in the U.S. will see ‘Lake America,’ those in Canada will continue to see ‘Lake Ontario,’ and those outside of the U.S. and Canada will see both names,” the company continued.

“These updates follow our long-standing policy for bodies of water with names that vary from country to country, and are starting to roll out now,” added Google.

Apple Maps has not yet made the same change. A representative for Apple did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Sunday, Aug. 30.

Trump administration officials marked the name change on social media. White House Communications Director Steven Chueng wrote on X, “It’s official! LAKE AMERICA on Google Maps.”

The president, 80, meanwhile, posted a link to an article about the change on Truth Social.

When Trump made the change official on Aug. 27, he commented on the U.S.’ relationship with its northern neighbor, expressing that “Canada has been ripping us off for a long time on trade.”

“We defend Canada for nothing… They don’t pay us to defend Canada, but we defend Canada,” he told reporters in the Oval Office after signing the executive order.

Al Drago/The Washington Post/Bloomberg via Getty

“They don’t pay for anything, and they want to be treated like a state, but they’re not a state,” continued Trump. “They want to be treated like they’re a state and we just can’t do that anymore”.

The president, who previously renamed the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America,” said it is a change he’s “been thinking about for a long time.”

The lake, which borders New York and the Canadian province of Ontario, is shared by the U.S. and Canada.

Although the U.S. government can establish names for federal use, Trump cannot force Canada or international organizations to adopt a new name for the shared waterway, according to the Associated Press.

Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty

Trump first brought up the idea of renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America on Truth Social on Aug. 25 amid rising tensions with Canada over tariffs.

He threatened a 50% tariff on cars, trucks, and automotive parts from Canada, starting in 2027, after failed trade negotiations.

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Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney vowed to match the 50% tariffs “dollar for dollar” beginning Sept. 8, per the AP.

He also pushed back on the name change via a statement on X.

“The name Lake Ontario comes from the Wendat word Ontari’io, which, appropriately, means ‘the lake is beautiful, the lake is big,’ ” he wrote on Aug. 27.

“The name is more than 400 years old, predating both the Confederation of Canada and the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America,” continued Carney. “We know that America is changing. Their trading relationships, their foreign policies, their national monuments, their hydronyms.”

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“Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario – then, now and always,” he said.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul also criticized the name change, writing in a post on X: “An acronym for the Great Lakes used to be HOMES. Thanks to Donald Trump, it’s now SHAME.”

Politics