Google faces lawsuit threat from Mexico over ‘Gulf of America’ name change

• Mexico threatened to sue Google for changing the Gulf of Mexico’s name to “Gulf of America” for US Maps users.
• President Claudia Sheinbaum said Mexico might file a civil suit if necessary.
• Google stated US users see “Gulf of America,” while others see both names.

Mexico on Thursday threatened to sue Google over its changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to “Gulf of America” for Maps users in the United States to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order.

“We do have a dispute with Google at the moment,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said at her morning news conference. “And if necessary, we will file a civil suit.”

Trump signed executive orders renaming the Gulf of Mexico and reverting the name of North America’s highest peak, Denali, back to Mt McKinley soon after his January 20 inauguration.

Sheinbaum has cheekily suggested calling the United States “Mexican America,” pointing to a map from before one-third of her country was seized by the United States in 1848.

Google said that users of its Maps platform outside the United States would continue to see both the original and new name for the Gulf of Mexico, as is the case for other disputed locations.

Mexico's President, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, speaks during a briefing conference. Photo / AFP

“People using Maps in the US will see ‘Gulf of America,’ and people in Mexico will see ‘Gulf of Mexico.’ Everyone else will see both names,” the tech giant said in a blog post.

Trump’s name changes also sparked criticism from Indigenous groups in Alaska, who have long advocated for maintaining the Denali name.

Apple has also renamed the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” for US users of its mapping application to comply with Trump’s order.

- Agence France-Presse