Apple Relabels Lake Ontario to Lake America
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Post By
Emmie
- September 2, 2026
Following direct lobbying from US President Donald Trump, Apple has updated its digital map application for United States users, renaming Lake Ontario to "Lake America".
The update by Apple coincides with executive John Ternus taking the helm as Apple's new chief executive officer. Ternus replaces long-standing CEO Tim Cook, who transitioned to the role of executive chairman while continuing to manage the company's governmental relationships worldwide.
Apple is the second major US tech provider to adopt the change, following Alphabet Inc.’s Google, which implemented the new label on Google Maps over the weekend.
The adjustments reflect a geographic directive issued by President Trump as part of a widening economic conflict with Canada. Washington imposed 50% tariffs on nearly $20 billion in Canadian imports after trade negotiations collapsed when Prime Minister Mark Carney’s administration walked away over what his office described as unacceptable demands.
Prime Minister Carney instructed the Trump administration to "start being serious" and refrain from posturing before talk of negotiations can resume. Canada pledged to respond with "dollar for dollar" counter-tariffs on US exports.
Trump’s order gives the US Department of the Interior 30 days to update the Geographic Names Information System, the official US database of standard place names, and Secretary Doug Burgum confirmed that Trump personally "reached out to Apple directly" to press for the change on Apple Maps.
Trump also shared AI-generated videos online depicting himself kicking over a sign for Lake Ontario and replacing it with one reading "Welcome to Lake America".
The renaming efforts have met strong pushback across the border:
- Indigenous Heritage: Named using an Indigenous word, Lake Ontario straddles the border between the state of New York and the province of Ontario.
- Canadian Defiance: Local officials erected a physical sign at the lake reading "Lake Ontario. Now and Always". Ontario Premier Doug Ford stated, "Just in case President Trump or anyone else forgets, we've set up this sign to remind them, it's Lake Ontario, now and forever."
While Trump's directive cannot legally mandate private software conventions, map platforms often align their labeling with federal reference databases to maintain standardization. Both Apple and Google previously adopted Trump's decree to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America" for US users in a decision that prompted a lawsuit from Mexico against Google.
Not all mapping services are adhering to the US decree. MapQuest publicly rejected the update, posting "we're not changing it" on Facebook and declaring "Name it whatever you want at your leisure" on social media. The stance propelled MapQuest's mobile software to the top spot among free applications on the Canadian Apple App Store.
