Following President Donald Trump's executive order to rename Lake Ontario as "Lake America," mapping services are beginning to reflect this change for U.S. users. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum confirmed that Trump personally contacted Apple to request the update, stating that the change could appear on Apple Maps "soon." This executive order was issued amidst escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and Canada, which included reciprocal tariffs on billions of dollars in goods.
Google Maps has already implemented the change for its U.S.-based users over the weekend, displaying "Lake America" to comply with the U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), the official U.S. government map database. However, Google Maps users in Canada still see the body of water as "Lake Ontario," and users in other parts of the world will see it labeled as "Lake Ontario (Lake America)." Apple has historically been slower than Google in adopting such name changes initiated by the Trump administration, including previous instances like the renaming of Mount Denali to Mount McKinley.
The renaming has sparked significant pushback in Canada. Ontario Premier Doug Ford unveiled a sign proclaiming "Lake Ontario Now and Always" and stated that "No one's going to call it Lake of America." Canadian utility companies, such as Hydro One and Hydro Ottawa, and the Liquor Board of Ontario, briefly displayed "Lake America" on their maps due to third-party mapping services, with Hydro One issuing an apology and working to correct the issue. Indigenous leaders on both sides of the border have also condemned the order as disrespectful and a violation of treaties, emphasizing the historical significance of the name Lake Ontario, derived from the Wendat word Ontari:io, meaning "the lake is beautiful, the lake is big."
The president's order is binding only on the U.S. government, giving private companies the option to comply. While Google made the change "to reflect name changes in official government sources" and align with its policy for bodies of water with varying international names, not all map providers are following suit. MapQuest, for example, publicly stated it would not change the name and even launched a tool allowing users to customize the lake's name on their platform.
