Google changes Lake Ontario to Lake of America for Google Maps users in the U.S.

Lake Ontario with the Toronto skyline in the background. Following its 'long-standing policy,' Google will now display Lake America instead of Lake Ontario for Maps users in the U.S. Photo by Rob Roberts/National Post

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Google has officially renamed Lake Ontario to Lake America on its Maps interface — at least for people using the app or website in the U.S.

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That change was initiated by an executive order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump last week, instructing the department of the interior to make it so.

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“These updates follow our long-standing policy for bodies of water with names that vary from country to country, and are starting to roll out now,” Google wrote.

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What app users will see depends on their country location, as determined by their device’s operating system, SIM, network and current location. Desktop and other web viewers are presented information based on individual regional search settings or, failing that, the device’s location as determined by Google.

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That means people in the U.S. should see Trump’s new moniker, Canadians will keep seeing the historically accurate name and the rest of the world will see both names, presented as “Lake Ontario (Lake America).”

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What Google Maps app users will see for Lake Ontario depends on their country location, as determined by their device’s operating system, SIM, network and current location. Desktop and other web viewers are presented with information based on individual regional search settings or, failing that, the device’s location as determined by Google. Photo by Google

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National Post contacted Google’s country manager for Canada, Sabrina Geramia, for comment but was directed back to its statement.

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In testing other web and app-based mapping services from a Canadian address, Apple Maps users continue to see Lake Ontario. A search for “Lake America” yields America Lake in Brule County, South Dakota and, curiously, Lake Ontario.

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MapQuest left no doubt that they would continue to honour the old name, posting on X that they are “not changing it.”

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They followed up by creating an interface that lets users enter their own names for the lake to generate a map image, or have MapQuest create one at random, such as “Lake Oh Canada,” “Lake Double-Double,” and “Lake Not Erie.”

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Their example, a shot at Trump’s Gulf of America renaming, was “Lake Are We Doing This Again?”

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