WhatB次元官网网址檚 in a name change, after all?
The water bordered by the Southern United States, Mexico and Cuba will be critical to shipping lanes and vacationers whether itB次元官网网址檚 called the Gulf of Mexico, as it has been for four centuries, or the , as . North AmericaB次元官网网址檚 highest mountain peak will still loom above Alaska whether itB次元官网网址檚 called Mt. Denali, as ordered by former President Barack Obama in 2015, or changed back to .
But TrumpB次元官网网址檚 territorial assertions, in line with , sparked a round of rethinking by mapmakers and teachers, snark on social media and sarcasm by at least one other world leader. And though Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis put the Trumpian B次元官网网址淕ulf of AmericaB次元官网网址 on an official document and some other gulf-adjacent states were considering doing the same, it was not clear how many others would follow TrumpB次元官网网址檚 lead.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum that if Trump went ahead with the renaming, her country would rename North America B次元官网网址淢exican America.B次元官网网址 On Tuesday, : B次元官网网址淔or us and for the entire world it will continue to be called the Gulf of Mexico.B次元官网网址
The politics of maps are undeniable
Map lines are inherently political. After all, theyB次元官网网址檙e representations of the places that are important to human beings B次元官网网址 and those priorities can be delicate and contentious, even more so in a globalized world where multiple nations often share the same maps.
罢丑别谤别B次元官网网址檚 .
B次元官网网址淒enaliB次元官网网址 is the mountainB次元官网网址檚 preferred name for Alaska Natives, while B次元官网网址淢cKinleyB次元官网网址 is a tribute to President William McKinley, designated in the late 19th century by a gold prospector. , and the countries surrounding what the United States calls the South China Sea have multiple names for the same body of water.
The Persian Gulf has been widely known by that name since the 16th century, although usage of B次元官网网址淕ulfB次元官网网址 and B次元官网网址淎rabian GulfB次元官网网址 is dominant in many countries in the Middle East. The government of Iran B次元官网网址 formerly Persia B次元官网网址 threatened to sue Google in 2012 over the companyB次元官网网址檚 decision not to label the body of water at all on its maps. Many Arab countries donB次元官网网址檛 recognize Israel and instead call it . And in many official releases, , B次元官网网址淛udea and Samaria.B次元官网网址
Americans and Mexicans diverge on what to call another key body of water, the river that forms the border between Texas and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas. Americans call it the Rio Grande; Mexicans call it the Rio Bravo.
B次元官网网址 titled B次元官网网址淩estoring Names That Honor American GreatnessB次元官网网址 B次元官网网址 concludes thusly: B次元官网网址淚t is in the national interest to promote the extraordinary heritage of our Nation and ensure future generations of American citizens celebrate the legacy of our American heroes. The naming of our national treasures, including breathtaking natural wonders and historic works of art, should honor the contributions of visionary and patriotic Americans in our NationB次元官网网址檚 rich past.B次元官网网址
But what to call the gulf with the 3,700-mile coastline?
B次元官网网址淚t is, I suppose, an internationally recognized sea, but (to be honest), a situation like this has never come up before so I need to confirm the appropriate convention,B次元官网网址 said Peter Bellerby, who said he was talking over the issue with the cartographers at his London company, Bellerby & Co. Globemakers. B次元官网网址淚f, for instance, he wanted to change the Atlantic Ocean to the American Ocean, we would probably just ignore it.B次元官网网址
For some, itB次元官网网址檚 decision time
As of Wednesday night, map applications for Google and Apple still called the mountain and the gulf by their old names. Spokespersons for those platforms did not immediately respond to emailed questions.
A spokesperson for National Geographic, one of the most prominent map makers in the U.S., said this week that the company does not comment on individual cases and referred questions to a statement on its web site, which reads in part that it B次元官网网址渟trives to be apolitical, to consult multiple authoritative sources, and to make independent decisions based on extensive research.B次元官网网址 National Geographic also has a policy of including explanatory notes for place names in dispute, citing as an example a body of water between Japan and the Korean peninsula, referred to as the Sea of Japan by the Japanese and the East Sea by Koreans.
The Associated Press, which disseminates news around the world to multiple audiences, will refer to the Gulf of Mexico by its original name while acknowledging the name Gulf of America. AP will, however, use the name Mount McKinley instead of Denali; the area lies solely in the United States and as president, Trump has the authority to change federal geographical names within the country.
In discussion on social media, one thread noted that the Sears Tower in Chicago was renamed the Willis Tower in 2009, though itB次元官网网址檚 still commonly known by its original moniker. PennsylvaniaB次元官网网址檚 capital, Harrisburg, renamed its Market Street to Martin Luther King Boulevard and then switched back to Market Street several years later B次元官网网址 with loud complaints both times. In 2017, New YorkB次元官网网址檚 Tappan Zee Bridge was renamed for the late Gov. Mario Cuomo to great controversy. The new name appears on maps, but B次元官网网址渘o one calls it that,B次元官网网址 noted another user.
B次元官网网址淎re we going to start teaching this as the name of the body of water?B次元官网网址 asked one Reddit poster on Tuesday.
B次元官网网址淚 guess you can tell students that SOME PEOPLE want to rename this body of water the Gulf of America, but everyone else in the world calls it the Gulf of Mexico,B次元官网网址 came one answer. B次元官网网址淐over all your bases B次元官网网址 they know the reality-based name, but also the wannabe name as well.B次元官网网址
Wrote another user: B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檒l call it the Gulf of America when IB次元官网网址檓 forced to call the Tappan Zee the Mario Cuomo Bridge, which is to say never.B次元官网网址