Trump Asked Google to Rename Atlantic Ocean 'Trump Ocean'

President Donald Trump told supporters at a South Carolina rally that he phoned Google CEO Sundar Pichai to propose renaming either the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean “Trump Ocean,” and that Pichai declined because oceans border many countries. Trump framed the request as a follow-up after Google updated its maps for U.S. users to reflect his earlier executive renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. He said he’s also considered names such as “Ocean of the Americas” and asked the crowd whether to leave the Atlantic’s name unchanged. Google has not publicly confirmed the conversation.

The claim sits within a pattern of moves to rebrand internationally recognized waterways: an executive order in January 2025 renamed the Gulf of Mexico for federal use, and another in August 2026 renamed Lake Ontario as Lake America, both resulting in U.S.-only map changes. Google says map labels follow official government name records such as the U.S. Geographic Names Information System. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names typically discourages renaming existing features and generally bars naming features after living people, though executive orders or congressional action can create federal-only names that other countries and international bodies need not adopt. Officials at Google, the White House and the Board have been contacted for comment.