President Trump order renames Lake Ontario as “Lake America,” prompting Google Maps label change on U.S. phones

President Donald Trump’s administration has directed a change to the official name of Lake Ontario, ordering it renamed “Lake America,” and the new terminology is now showing up in a major consumer navigation app for at least some U.S. users. The White House posted an executive order on Aug. 27 describing the policy as part of a broader administration effort to adjust naming practices for geographic features, referencing prior executive action dated Jan. 20, 2025.

The executive order’s text, published on the White House website, sets out a purpose and policy section tied to recognizing “American” history associated with the Great Lakes, and it specifies the renamed label for Lake Ontario as “Lake America.” The order is the administration’s formal basis for federal alignment on the name, establishing the change through executive authority rather than legislation.

On Aug. 30, The Hill reported that Google Maps changed the label for the lake on U.S. phones to “Lake America.” The report said the company kept “Lake Ontario” for Canadian users and displayed both names for international users, describing the update as linked to the U.S. geographic naming change announced by the Trump administration.

The practical effect for federal and state users, and for the public, is likely to be most visible through navigation tools, travel and logistics products, and any mapping services that display names based on regional language settings. For U.S. residents using Google Maps, the change can affect everything from casual directions to how businesses, emergency services, and other services present location information in apps that pull from geonaming sources.

The administration’s naming order also raises routine questions about implementation and consistency across federal systems and private-sector platforms. Geographic names used in government datasets and public materials often flow into third-party tools over time, but private companies can choose how quickly to reflect changes, whether to show local alternatives, and what labels to apply for different countries or languages.

The White House posted the executive order as a presidential action under the administration’s authority, and it also referenced Executive Order 14172, dated Jan. 20, 2025, as part of the stated policy framework. The order’s posted sections indicate the administration’s intent to apply the updated naming as a matter of U.S. policy rather than a purely voluntary change.

The Hill’s report suggests Google Maps is already applying the U.S.-specific label for U.S. users, including a differentiated approach for Canadian users. That split labeling underscores how private mapping providers may align to local or regional naming standards while preserving alternative names where they remain in use internationally.