Trump administration says name change to 'Gulf of America' is now official

(Patria) - The Interior Department of the Trump administration announced on Friday that it has officially changed the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, and Alaska's Denali peak to Mount McKinley.

U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the name change as part of a series of executive actions several hours after taking office on Monday, fulfilling a campaign promise.

"By order of the President, the Gulf of Mexico will now officially be known as the Gulf of America, and North America's highest peak will once again bear the name Mount McKinley," the Interior Department said in a statement, Reuters reported.

Alaska's high peak was previously called Mount McKinley, in honor of former U.S. President William McKinley, but in 1975 it was renamed Denali at the request of the state, meaning "high" in the language of the indigenous Koyukon people.

"These changes reaffirm the nation's commitment to preserving the extraordinary heritage of the United States and ensuring that future generations of Americans celebrate the legacy of their heroes and historical assets," the Department said.

In his inaugural address on Monday, Trump said that McKinley, a Republican who served as president from 1897 to 1901, "made our country very rich through tariffs and talent, he was a natural businessman." McKinley led the United States during an era of expansionism, taking Hawaii, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Hawaii later became a U.S. state.

Although Trump can order the U.S. Geological Survey to change how it labels the Gulf of Mexico, such a name change is unlikely to be internationally recognized.

Mexico, which like the U.S. has a long coastline encircling the body of water, said that the name Gulf of Mexico is internationally recognized and has been used as a maritime navigation reference for hundreds of years.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum earlier this month jokingly proposed that North America, including the United States, be renamed "Mexican America," a historical name used on an early map of the region.