\u201cWe\u2019re going to be changing the name of Lake Ontario, effective immediately to Lake America,\u201d Trump said in the Oval Office before signing the order. He used a marker<\/a> to scratch out \u201cLake Ontario\u201d on a map and replace it with \u201cLake America.\u201d<\/p>\n The name change comes amid a brewing trade war<\/a> between the U.S. and Canada<\/a>. On August 24, Trump announced a 50 percent tariff on Canadian steel, auto parts, and vehicles. The U.S. and Canada met to negotiate a trade deal, but those talks broke down after which Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney<\/a> announced a \u201cdollar for dollar\u201d tariff on approximately 900 American<\/a>-made goods. <\/p>\n Trump had threatened to rename Lake Ontario \u2014 one of the Great Lakes \u2014 earlier this week and followed through on Thursday. <\/p>\n But what does it actually mean that Trump renamed the lake, and who has to acknowledge the name change? <\/p>\n Trump has the power to force federal agencies to acknowledge the name. That means maps produced by agencies like the NOAA, the U.S. Geological Survey, or the Army Corps of Engineers will have to adhere to the \u201cLake America\u201d name, just as they had to adhere to Trump\u2019s decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico<\/a> to the \u201cGulf of America.\u201d <\/p>\n Doug Burgum, the Secretary of the Interior, indicated on Thursday he was ready and willing to comply with Trump\u2019s new name. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re on it, Mr. President! The places and waters that border our nation and support our economy should reflect the greatness of the United States. @USGS maps our country for the world to see, and we are PROUD to implement your Executive Order to rename LAKE AMERICA,\u201d he wrote on X<\/a>. <\/p>\n Beyond forcing federal entities to change the name on federal maps and documents, few others have to acknowledge the name change. Foreign governments have no obligation to call Lake Ontario \u201cLake America,\u201d nor do any private entities. Trump learned that directly when the Associated Press refused to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America after he changed the name. <\/p>\n Even U.S. states can ignore Trump\u2019s order, as they are not beholden to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, which oversees the names of geographic locations for federal agencies. <\/p>\n Trump hinted on Thursday that he may not be done slapping the word \u201cAmerica\u201d on geographic locations. <\/p>\n \u201cIf you think about it, we have a gulf and we have a lake. Now, all we need is an ocean. So, maybe we\u2019ll have to change the name of the Atlantic, and\/or the Pacific. Maybe we\u2019ll change them both,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n When he was asked what message he wanted to send by renaming the lake to Lake America, he said \u201cno message,\u201d before launching into a rant about Canada \u201cripping off\u201d the U.S.<\/p>\n \u201cCanada has been ripping us off for a long time on trade,\u201d he said. \u201cThey don\u2019t pay for anything, and they want to be treated like a state, but they\u2019re not a state.\u201d<\/p>\n Shortly after taking office for his second term in 2025, Trump followed through on his promise to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.”<\/a><\/p>\n In February 2025, the Board on Geographic Names formally changed the name of the body of water to the \u201cGulf of America.\u201d Trump also ordered Denali \u2014 the highest mountain in North America \u2014 to return to its previous moniker, Mount McKinley.<\/p>\n On Super Bowl Sunday of that year, Trump flew over the gulf in Air Force One and declared it the first-ever \u201cGulf of America Day.\u201d <\/p>\n Both Google Maps and Apple Maps updated the name on their apps shortly after the announcement. <\/p>\n![\"President](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2291733364...jpeg\")
President Trump signed an executive order to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America” amid an ongoing trade war between the U.S. and Canada on August 27, 2026 (Getty)<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2203672261...jpeg\")
A map of the \u2018Gulf of America\u2019 is seen as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks before signing executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in 2025 (Getty)<\/p>\n