President Donald Trump said he would probably leave the Atlantic Ocean’s name unchanged after recounting an unverified exchange with Google CEO Sundar Pichai about whether Google Maps could handle a change.
Trump made the remarks at a rally in Pendleton, South Carolina, on Oct. 21. The Associated Press reported that the event was held in support of Sen. Darline Graham’s campaign ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
Trump said he asked Pichai, “Can you handle it?” In Trump’s account, Pichai replied, “They cover a lot of countries,” and Trump said he answered, “I’ll probably pass it.”
He then joked about calling the Pacific the “American Ocean” and asked how Europe would respond. The Associated Press also reported that Trump said he was considering either ocean but would not put “either Trump or America on any other ocean.”
The U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) standardizes geographic names for federal use. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) says commercial map providers, including Google Maps, decide whether to adopt federal naming decisions.
Executive Order 14172 assigned the Interior secretary the task of giving the Gulf of Mexico’s U.S. continental-shelf area the label “Gulf of America.” Executive Order 14422, signed Aug. 27, 2026, sets “Lake America” as the name for Lake Ontario in federal references. Neither directive refers to an Atlantic Ocean change.
