Google Maps Renames Lake Ontario to Lake America Amidst Geopolitical Shift
Google Maps has made another significant change to its geographic labels, renaming 'Lake Ontario' to 'Lake America' for users inside the US. This move follows a similar revision in February 2025 when Google changed the designation of the Gulf of Mexico to 'Gulf of America'.
The update is in response to a presidential executive order issued last week and reflects changes made by the U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) to officially rename 'Lake Ontario' as 'Lake America'. Users will see different labels depending on their location: those within the US will see 'Lake America', Canadians will continue to see 'Lake Ontario', and users outside of these countries will see both names.
Canada has defended its historical origins, with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney emphasizing that the original name has been in use for over 400 years. The name 'Ontario' comes from the Wendat word Ontari'io, meaning 'the lake is beautiful, the lake is big.'