Apple is joining Google by changing its Maps software and apps to now display “Gulf of America” on the body of water that’s been known as the Gulf of Mexico since the 16th century.
Google began to populare the change on Feb. 10, and Apple just a day later, on Feb. 11. Typing “Gulf” in Google Maps still returns “Gulf of Mexico” as the top search result, but selecting it takes users to the body of water with Gulf of America as the label. In Apple Maps, typing “Gulf of Mexico” takes users to a map of the area, and changes the search phrase to Gulf of America.
Before Apple began to make the change, some people on social media said that Google adopting the changed name was enough to make them switch to alternate map software from Apple and Microsoft. One person wrote on X, “It gives me no pleasure to announce that Apple Maps and Bing Maps are not superior to Google.”
A representative for Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
Microsoft’s Bing Maps was still using the Gulf of Mexico name as of Jan. 11. A representative for Microsoft also did not respond to a request for comment.
Google said in late January it would be making the change after an executive order from president Donald Trump called for renaming the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America. Google said in a series of social media posts that it was complying with Global Navigation Information Systems data and that it would take some time for the update to go through. On Feb. 10, Google published a blog post letting users know what they will see in its software.
In the post, the company said, “The names you see in the Maps app are based on your country location, which is determined by information from your phone’s operating system (e.g., iOS and Android), including your SIM, network and locale. If you’re using Google Maps on the web, the names are based on the region you select in your Search settings or your device’s location, if you haven’t selected one.”
Read More: Apple Is Joining Google Using Gulf of America in Its Maps Program
