Trump says he asked Google Maps to rename Atlantic Ocean

Updated / Thursday, 22 Oct 2026 21:18

US President Donald Trump has said that Google CEO Sundar Pichai turned down his request to rename the Atlantic Ocean the "American Ocean".

Mr Trump was speaking at a campaign rally in South Carolina where he said he had called Google, which owns Google Maps, about the idea.

He said the company had told him that oceans "are different" because they touch many countries.

"I said, 'Sundar, I'm thinking of the Atlantic Ocean. Can you handle it?'

"'No, no, no, this time I'm not doing it,' he said, 'Oceans are different, sir. They cover a lot of - really a lot of countries. Please don't ask us to do that.'"

The US president later said he would "probably pass" and keep the name Atlantic, before saying, "We're going to call it the American Ocean".

"Europe would be thrilled," Mr Trump said.

Google, owned by Alphabet, changed the Gulf of Mexico to "Gulf of America" on its maps for US users after Mr Trump ordered the change in January 2025.

Google also designated Lake Ontario as "Lake America" on maps seen by US users after President Trump announced he was renaming the body of water.

People in Canada and elsewhere still see the body of water labelled Lake Ontario.

Last month, Mr Trump suggested the state of New Mexico could become "New America".

Additional reporting AFP