Google officially updates name of ‘Gulf of America’

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Google has updated the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America” for U.S. users following a formal update by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names.

The change follows President Trump’s directive on Jan. 20, his first day in office. The executive order instructed the Department of the Interior to take all steps necessary to make the change official.

The department said the U.S. Board on Geographic Names was working “expeditiously” to update the names of these features in the U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) and that the changes are “effective immediately for federal use.”

In a blog post, Google explained that users outside the U.S. will see “Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America),” while Mexican users will see “Gulf of Mexico.”

Google stated it follows official government sources for name changes and no longer automatically marks cultural observances on Google Calendar, relying on timeanddate.com for holidays.

The company plans to revert Alaska’s Mount Denali to Mount McKinley once the name change is reflected in the U.S. Geographic Names Information System.