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Gulf of Mexico naming controversy
US geographic naming controversy since 2025 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The name of the Gulf of Mexico became a subject of dispute in the United States starting in 2025.
The gulf has been known as the Gulf of Mexico since the 1550s,[1] having derived its name from Mexica, the Nahuatl term for the Aztecs.[2] The name soon became internationally recognized and in use by bodies such as the International Hydrographic Organization.[3]
On January 7, 2025, U.S. president-elect Donald Trump announced that he intended to rename the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America".[4] On January 20, 2025, the day of his inauguration, President Trump signed Executive Order 14172, directing U.S. federal agencies to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America". As an executive order, only the U.S. executive branch is required to use this nomenclature, although major online map platforms and some U.S.-based media outlets voluntarily made the change. As of February 2025[update], polling shows the majority of Americans oppose renaming the Gulf of Mexico.[5][6][7]
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Background
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Amerigo Vespucci, along with other explorers, is credited with the first European exploration of the Gulf of Mexico and the Yucatán Channel, between 1497 and 1498. He navigated the Straits of Florida, and continued northward up to Chesapeake Bay before returning to Spain. It has been disputed, however, that the voyage actually took place.[9][10]
For centuries, the Gulf of Mexico has been recognized by that name—derived from the term Mexica (the Nahuatl name for the Aztecs[11]). It began to be used on early European maps in 1550,[1][12][13] and the name soon became established in international cartography and legal usage by bodies such as the International Hydrographic Organization.[14][3]
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) received a proposal to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America in 2006, and the Board on Geographic Names (BGN) unanimously decided not to approve it.[15][16] Renaming the waters was the humorous premise of a 2010 piece by American comedian Stephen Colbert, who proposed creation of a "Gulf of America fund" to pay for the cleanup necessary following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, stating: "I don't think we can call it the Gulf of Mexico anymore. We broke it, we bought it."[17]
Steve Holland, a Democratic state representative from Mississippi, jokingly introduced a 2012 bill proposing the name change. In a radio interview at the time, he explained that the Mississippi GOP appeared dedicated to pushing anything Mexican out of the state, so renaming the Gulf would help with that cause. "This new majority goes against a lot of the tenets of New Testament Christianity that I've based 29 years of legislation on," Holland told NPR. "They want to kick immigrants out of the state, they want to drug-test Medicaid people, they want to get rid of anything that's not 'America'. So I just thought it would be in keeping to introduce a bill to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. It fits right in with what the majority thinking apparently is now."[18][19][20]
The bill was introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives on January 9, 2025.[21] In a January 15-16 poll of US registered voters, 72% opposed the renaming while 28% supported it.[22] On May 8, the House narrowly approved the bill, but it is uncertain whether the Senate will take action.[23]
On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order 14172 directing the interior secretary to adopt the name Gulf of America, specifying an area of the U.S. continental shelf "extending to the seaward boundary with Mexico and Cuba."[24][25][26] The U.S. Interior Department confirmed that US federal agencies would use the name Gulf of America from January 24.[27] As an executive order, this does not compel the use of the new name by non-federal agencies, private companies, or foreign entities.[28] Trump declared February 9, 2025, to be "Gulf of America Day".[29]
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Reactions to declaration
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In the United States
Reactions among U.S. political figures and agencies have been mixed. Proponents of the renaming argue that it reinforces an "America First" agenda and reflects a renewed emphasis on national heritage.[30][31][32] Several state officials from Gulf Coast states have at times supported the change in official documents.[33][34]
A February 2025 poll by Marquette University found that among 1,018 respondents nationwide, 71% opposed the Gulf of America renaming and 29% supported the name change.[35][36] In a February 2025 poll of 871 registered voters in Florida who were active by the University of North Florida found that 58% of overall respondents opposed renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, 31% supported it, 10% said they were not sure and 1% refused to answer the question.[37][38]
Since February 10, 2025, Google Maps and Google Earth have varied the name displayed for the Gulf based on device location settings.[39][40][41] Apple Maps and Bing Maps have also changed their label for the Gulf.[42][43] MapQuest refused to alter the name, joking that they had lost the ability to update their information when owned by AOL in the 2000s. They also said that they follow the naming conventions from the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).[44] Since February 18, 2025, the GNIS has shown the name of the gulf as "Gulf of America".[45]
Various bodies and media outlets reacted to the federal action, with most saying that common usage for the gulf would prevail.[46][47] Among prominent media outlets, Axios and Fox News adopted the change, with USA Today using both names in tandem.[48][49] On February 11, the White House chose to not invite an Associated Press (AP) reporter to an event in the Oval Office over the AP's decision to continue using "Gulf of Mexico," which the AP executive editor Julie Pace condemned as a violation of its First Amendment rights.[50]
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the decision of the White House, saying:
If we feel there are lies being pushed by outlets in this room, we are going to hold those lies accountable ... And it is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf of America, and I'm not sure why news outlets don't want to call it that but that is what it is.[51]
On February 14, the White House deputy chief of staff, Taylor Budowich, announced that Associated Press journalists were banned indefinitely from the Oval Office and Air Force One due to their decision to continue using "Gulf of Mexico", with Budowich accusing the Associated Press of "commitment to misinformation" and "irresponsible and dishonest reporting".[52][53] The White House Correspondents Association responded that the White House has "publicly admitted they are restricting access to events to punish a news outlet for not advancing the government's preferred language", and argued that this violated President Trump's "executive order on freedom of speech and ending federal censorship".[52] On February 18, Trump said that the Associated Press would continue to be barred "until such time as they agree that it's the Gulf of America".[54] On April 8, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction that would take effect on April 13 requiring the White House to reinstate Associated Press access.[55]
On June 16, the Trump Organization announced the launch of a telecommunications company called Trump Mobile. Later that day, the firm removed its cellular coverage map "after sharp-eyed users noticed" that the Gulf of Mexico was shown with that name rather than with Trump's preferred name.[56]
International response
Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum sarcastically countered President Trump by proposing to rename North America:
Obviously the Gulf of Mexico is recognized by the United Nations... but why don't we call [North America] "Mexican America"? We're going to call it Mexican America....It sounds pretty, no? Isn't it true?[57][58]
After Google Maps revised the Gulf's display name, Sheinbaum sued Google, reiterating that United States sovereignty is limited to 12 nautical miles from the coast.[59][60]
The United Kingdom declined to recognize any different name for the Gulf of Mexico, based on common usage across the English-speaking world.[47]
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References
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