"Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America)": Google implements renaming almost worldwide
Donald Trump no longer wants the Gulf of Mexico to be called that. Google is now complying, at least in the USA. But things are also changing in this country.
The Gulf of Mexico in Google Earth
(Image: Google)
The map service Google Maps has implemented a change ordered by the new US President and now also refers to the Gulf of Mexico worldwide as the “Gulf of America” in brackets. Users in the USA, however, will now only see the body of water under the name “Gulf of America”, while only in Mexico will the previous name “Gulf of Mexico” continue to be displayed. Google made this public in a blog post and explained that the location is determined by the operating system on smartphones, while the search or location settings are used on PCs.
Mexico's objection falls flat
Donald Trump ordered the name change shortly after taking office, and Google had assured him that it would comply. In addition to the bay, the US president also ordered that the highest mountain in North America be renamed Mount McKinley instead of Denali. However, while this is located in Alaska and therefore in the USA, the name change of the Gulf of Mexico also affects its neighbors. The decision has caused disgruntlement, particularly in the neighboring country of the same name; Mexico's president is convinced that the US government is not entitled to change the name at all. However, a letter to Google to this effect has apparently not convinced the US company.
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At Google, Trump's order had already ensured that the department responsible for maps now internally classifies the United States as a “sensitive” country. This means that the country is now treated in the same way as China, Russia, Israel, Saudi Arabia or Iraq in relation to Google Maps. The changes ordered by Trump should therefore be implemented with the utmost urgency, and the responsible employees should drop everything. At least this has now happened for the Gulf of Mexico, but Mt McKinley is still called Denali in Google Maps.
(mho)
