Google Maps renames Lake Ontario for US users, prompting online backlash

Google Maps has given Lake Ontario a different name depending on where users access the service, turning a cross-border geographic feature into a source of online and political dispute.

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Some Ontario government agency websites pull map data directly from Google Maps. Following Google’s recent changes, we are actively checking our websites to make sure they all call Lake Ontario by its correct name: Lake Ontario.

Users in the United States will see “Lake America,” while users in Canada will see “Lake Ontario.” People elsewhere will see “Lake Ontario (Lake America).” Google said it updated Maps using official government sources after President Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming the lake.

The decision quickly drew criticism on X. Some users called it “pathetic” and accused Google of spreading misinformation. Others said the company had bowed to Trump. Trump supporters on the platform welcomed the change.

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As Ontarians, we will always defend our province, our identity and the places that define it.

The dispute also reached Ontario’s provincial government. Legislator Steven Crawford said some Ontario government websites had displayed “Lake America” because they pulled map data directly from Google Maps. He said officials were checking the sites to ensure they used what he called the lake’s correct name, Lake Ontario. Ontario Premier Doug Ford shared Crawford’s post and said the lake “is and always will be Lake Ontario.”

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To be clear: Lake Ontario is and always will be Lake Ontario.

Google’s spokesperson said developers embedding Google Maps on their websites can choose a region to localize the map. Setting the region to Canada, the spokesperson said, will display “Lake Ontario.”

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‘Lake Ontario’ will be displayed when developers set the region to Canada.