PENDLETON, S.C. (Diya TV) — President Donald Trump said Google CEO Sundar Pichai rejected his request to rename the Atlantic Ocean on Google Maps. Google has not confirmed the conversation, which Trump described at a rally Wednesday.
Trump told the crowd he had called Google after the company updated U.S. maps to reflect his administration’s previous name changes. “We have a lake and we have a gulf, now we need a river and we need an ocean,” he said. Trump recalled asking Pichai whether Google could handle a new name for the Atlantic. According to Trump, Pichai replied, “No, no, no. This time I’m not doing it,” because oceans border many countries.
Trump said he would “probably pass” on the Atlantic proposal, but his comments left open the possibility of renaming the Pacific. Earlier this month, he floated “Trump Ocean” and “Ocean of the Americas” for either ocean at a Tennessee rally.
The earlier changes came through executive orders directing U.S. agencies to use “Gulf of America” for the Gulf of Mexico and “Lake America” for Lake Ontario. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names maintains standard names for federal use. Those orders do not require other countries to adopt the new names.
Google says its Maps labels reflect official government sources and vary by the user’s location. U.S. users see “Gulf of America” and “Lake America”; users in Mexico and Canada see “Gulf of Mexico” and “Lake Ontario.” Users elsewhere see both names.
Trump announced no similar federal order for the Atlantic. For now, the proposed name change remains a story Trump told about a call Google has not verified.
