➤ President Donald Trump signed an order to call the “Gulf of Mexico” the “Gulf of America”. The move has upset Mexico and created a challenge for mapping companies.
On January 20, US President Donald Trump signed an order to change the name of the “Gulf of Mexico” to the “Gulf of America”. Mr. Trump believes the name change will “honor American greatness”.
The name change only affects the US. The rest of the world continues to call the body of water the “Gulf of Mexico”. The area described is between the United States and Mexico and does not belong to the US. It has been known as the Gulf of Mexico since the 1600s.
Mr. Trump’s change has upset Mexico, and has caused problems for companies that provide maps. Most mapping companies have decided to use the name “Gulf of America” inside the US, and to continue to use the name “Gulf of Mexico” outside the US. Some companies are showing both names, with one in parentheses.
(Source: Google.)
The White House is demanding that all news organizations use the new name. On February 12, the White House stopped a reporter from a news group called the Associated Press (AP) from coming to an event for reporters because the AP is not using “Gulf of America” in its articles.
The AP says it will follow Mr. Trump’s name changes for areas inside US territory, but not for areas the US does not control.
Mr. Trump’s order also changed the name of Alaska’s “Mount Denali” back to “Mount McKinley”. This undid a name change made by Ex-President Barack Obama in 2015. Mr. Obama made the change because the state of Alaska had requested it.