The Trump administration announced Friday that it had changed the name of the Gulf of Mexico to “Gulf of America” and renamed Denali, the highest peak in North America located in Alaska, to “Mount McKinley”, a decision that provokes mixed reactions. These measures follow President Donald Trump’s promises to restore certain historic names, report The New York Times and other American media.
The Interior Department said the renaming of the Gulf was “one of the most vital assets in the Nation’s history and economy.” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has already adopted this designation, mentioning in a winter weather warning an area of low pressure moving “across the Gulf of America” towards Florida.
“America Mexicana” or “Mexican America”
However, this initiative is not unanimously accepted internationally. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum responded by ironically suggesting America be renamed “America Mexicana” or “Mexican America.”
Regarding Denali, the summit was officially renamed by the Obama administration in 2015, after decades of advocacy from Alaska Native groups. The Trump administration called the decision an “affront” to William McKinley, the assassinated former US president, after whom the mountain was named after a gold prospector proposed it. Yet McKinley, an Ohio native, had no known ties to Alaska.
Strong opposition in Alaska over the Denali case
Republican senators from Alaska, Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, opposed the change, saying that “Denali is the rightful name” for the 6,190-meter mountain, located on the lands of the Koyukon peoples and other indigenous groups.
Find our information on the Gulf of Mexico
Although the American Board on Geographic Names, which is responsible for standardizing place names, is involved in these decisions, the Secretary of the Interior has unilateral authority to finalize these changes if the board does not act quickly, The New further specifies. York Times.