Trump's Bold Move: Lake Ontario's Surprising New Name Sparks Debate

President Donald Trump called Apple about changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America in the hopes of getting them to alter their maps, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Monday.

Trump announced Lake Ontario would now be called Lake America on Thursday, as part of his trade feud with Canada. Google Maps has already updated its system to reflect the change, but Apple users using the company's own map will still see Lake Ontario when they open the page. They also can't search for Lake America to get directions. However, that may be changing.

During an interview with Fox Business' Mornings With Maria, Burgum told guest host Cheryl Casone, who was filling in for host Maria Bartiromo, that Trump reached out to Apple directly.

"I know that the president reached out to Apple directly, so I'm sure that we may be seeing that change coming up soon to Lake America," Burgum said.

Burgum added that Trump signing the executive order for the name change, it requires the Department of Interior's Board of Geographic Names to change the name on their software, which "cascades down to all the map providers."

Newsweek reached out to Apple for comment via email but did not receive a response in time for publication.

Google announced that U.S. users of Google Maps would see “Lake America,” while Canadian users would continue to see “Lake Ontario” and users elsewhere would see both names.

"These updates follow our long-standing policy for bodies of water with names that vary from country to country, and are starting to roll out now," Google said in a blog post on Saturday.

In a social media post, MapQuest said it won't be changing the name of Lake Ontario. MapQuest has since surged to the number one downloaded Navigation application. The company also refused to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America in early 2025, but gave users the opportunity to name their own gulf. A similar tool was created for people to be able to name their own lake.

Waze still has Lake Ontario labeled Lake Ontario on its map.

Newsweek has reached out to Waze for comment via email but did not receive a response in time for publication.

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Trump's decision to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America” is the latest flashpoint in his administration’s escalating dispute with Canada and follows a pattern of symbolic geographic rebranding efforts that he has championed since returning to office.

On Thursday, Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of the Interior to change the name of Lake Ontario to “Lake America” in U.S. federal records and mapping systems, declaring the move effective immediately. The order instructed federal agencies and the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), the government’s official geographic database, to adopt the new name for federal use.

The White House framed the change as a recognition of the lake’s importance to U.S. history, commerce, defense and exploration. According to the executive order, the administration argued that the United States possesses much of the lake’s volume and that the waterway has long served as a significant American asset. Trump said he had completed all of the necessary paperwork and notifications required for the change.

The move came amid rapidly worsening relations between Washington and Ottawa. In the days leading up to the order, trade negotiations between the U.S. and Canada had collapsed, triggering a new round of tariffs and counter-tariffs. The Trump administration imposed 50 percent tariffs on billions of dollars in Canadian goods, while Canada announced retaliatory duties on a wide range of American products. Trump repeatedly linked the name change to his broader criticism of Canada’s trade policies, accusing the country of unfairly benefiting from its economic and security relationship with the U.S.

Lake Ontario is one of North America’s five Great Lakes and sits along the border between New York and the Canadian province of Ontario. The lake has carried the name “Ontario” for centuries. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney noted that the name derives from the Wendat word “Ontari’io,” meaning “the lake is beautiful, the lake is big,” and predates both the U.S. and the modern Canadian state. He argued that the historic name reflects Indigenous heritage and should remain unchanged.

Canadian officials quickly rejected the executive order. Carney stated that Canada would continue referring to the body of water as Lake Ontario. Ontario Premier Doug Ford similarly dismissed the effort and unveiled signage declaring “Lake Ontario—Now and Always.” The Seneca Nation, whose ancestral territory is connected to the region, also criticized the renaming and urged the administration to reverse the decision, arguing that the traditional name honors Indigenous peoples who lived around the lake long before the creation of either country.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul, whose state is the only U.S. state bordering Lake Ontario, said New York would not adopt the new name.

The renaming echoes Trump’s earlier executive action changing “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America” for U.S. federal use. As with that move, the Lake Ontario order does not compel foreign governments, international bodies or private mapmakers to adopt the new terminology. However, some companies have updated their products to reflect the federal designation.

Contact Newsweek editors for this story: John Fitzpatrick and Anthony Murray.