If you live in America and open the Google Maps app at coordinates 43.7° N, 77.9° W, you will see that the name “Lake Ontario” has been renamed “Lake America”.
It's already happened — at least on Google Maps. Google's online maps reflect name changes in official government sources, Google announced Saturday. So when the U.S. Geographic Names Information System officially changed the name of "Lake Ontario" to "Lake America," Google renamed it too. for visitors from the USA.
“People in Canada will continue to see ‘Lake Ontario,’” Google said. And people from every other country in the world… “will see both names.” How will it be spelled?
Lake Ontario (Lake America)
"These updates follow our long-standing policy for water bodies with names that differ from country to country."
Meanwhile, NPR reports that Ontario’s premier has put up a sign reading “Lake Ontario — Now and Always” on the Canadian side of the lake (repeating the message in French). And The Daily Beast reports that Google’s move has sparked criticism online:
“Hey, you gave one of the Great Lakes the wrong name. Very annoying mistake, so you might want to fix it,” wrote one user on X…
MapQuest, on the other hand, stated that it would not change the name and instead released a new tool that allows users to rename the lake as they wish.
Although the press releases will range from very select to rare, I said I'd pass...because sometimes the editors hide.
