Gulf of Mexico in Google Maps now Gulf of Mexico

In Google Maps, the Gulf of Mexico, which until recently was called the Gulf of Mexico, has now become the Gulf of Mexico. In different parts of the world, we see the name differently. Americans have the gulf named "Gulf of the United States" in the app, Mexicans have it called "Gulf of Mexico," and the rest of us see it as "Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of the United States)."

Google said in a statement that the change was made as part of a “longstanding practice” of tracking name changes as they are updated by government sources. This came after new US President Donald Trump ordered the renaming in government documents. After signing the order, President Trump even declared February 9th “American Gulf Day.”

Apple followed Google's lead with its Maps app. Mexico condemned the move, saying the US had no right to change the name.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has called on Google to reconsider its decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico. She argues that the US cannot legally change the name of the Gulf because the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea dictates that a country's sovereign territory extends only up to 12 nautical miles from its shores. "Any reference to the 'Gulf of the Americas' initiative on your Google Maps platform must be strictly limited to the maritime area under US jurisdiction," she said.

Mexico has announced a lawsuit against Google if maps shown to users in the US continue to refer to the entire gulf as the Gulf of America.