People Are Mass Reporting ‘Gulf of America’ Name Change As Being Incorrect to Google
President Donald Trump, from right, speaks to reporters accompanied by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Burgum's wife Kathryn Burgum, aboard Air Force One where Trump signed a proclamation declaring Feb. 9 Gulf of America Day, as he travels from West Palm Beach, Fla. to New Orleans, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
Not everyone is ready—or willing—to change. Google has found out the hard way as people have started mass reporting the change from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. The company announced on January 27 that it would be proceeding with the change after the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) officially updated the name.
People using Google Maps in the U.S. now see “Gulf of America” instead of “Gulf of Mexico.” People in Mexico, however, see only “Gulf of Mexico.” And people outside of these two countries now see both names.” This has prompted mass reporting from people in the United States, claiming the name is inaccurate. Google, in response, has turned off the option to report.
“We regularly put protections on places during times when we anticipate an uptick of contributions that are off-topic or unrelated to someone’s direct experience with the place,” Forbes reported a spokesperson from Google saying, indicating they were referred to a blog post from 2023 that refers to the company’s rules for “policy-violating content.”
“We’re invested in making sure information is accurate and unhelpful content is removed,” reads the blog post. Google is not the only one, with the name “Gulf of America” now the display name in both Apple Maps and Bing, as well.
Despite Google limiting reports on Google Maps, it’s still possible to report the name as inaccurate on the search engine itself. If you search “Gulf of Mexico,” the search will redirect you to “Gulf of America.” You can click on the three little dots next to the search result, select the option to send feedback and then the option for inaccurate content. It’s unknown if Google will also restrict this option in the future.