Trump wants to rename Lake Ontario ‘Lake America’ even as its name predates both US and Canada; Canadians say no

U.S. President Donald Trump has floated renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America,” adding a new cultural flashpoint to an already bitter trade dispute with Canada and drawing swift pushback from residents on the Canadian side of the border.

“He can blow out his hole as much as he wants to, but it's never going to happen, because Canadians are strong,” Ontario resident Patricia Wiseman told AP.

Trump raised the proposal on Monday, just hours before Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was due to announce reciprocal tariffs on U.S. imports. The president said the United States was considering the change because it did not expect to do much business with Ontario.


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“The United States is giving serious consideration to changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America in that we don't expect to doing much business with Ontario any longer,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

The White House later reinforced the messaging by posting a Lego map of the United States on social media that labeled the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America,” another name change Trump has pursued.

While the U.S. government has broad authority over the geographic names it uses on its own maps and official documents, Trump cannot compel Canada or private citizens to adopt the proposed name. Lake Ontario is a shared body of water and its existing name is used on both sides of the border.

The proposal also comes as relations between the two neighbours have deteriorated sharply under Trump's second presidency, with disputes over trade, tariffs and Canada's economic ties with the United States increasingly spilling into rhetoric over national identity.

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“I believe the American people love us, and we love them,” Wiseman said, speaking to AP. “They're going through as much turmoil as we are. Hopefully, one day we can reunite.”

Lake Ontario sits at the centre of the trade fight

The United States and Canada share a border that runs through several of the Great Lakes, including Lake Ontario. The lake stretches between New York state and Ontario, separating Toronto from the United States and forming a significant part of New York's northern geography.

Ontario is Canada's most populous province and is also the largest export market for more than a dozen U.S. states, underscoring the economic stakes in the latest escalation.

The Trump administration imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion worth of Canadian goods over the weekend after trade negotiations broke down. The measures build on tariffs introduced by Trump in 2025, soon after he returned to the White House.

Trump has also threatened additional 50% tariffs on Canadian vehicles, auto parts and steel. Carney has said Washington's demands amount to an effort to “destroy our major industries,” including the auto, steel and aluminum sectors.

For Canadians living near the border, the rhetoric has become increasingly difficult to ignore.

“It's disappointing,” Ontario resident Paul Butler said of Trump's policies and comments, reported AP. “The more you hear it, it just gets downright infuriating.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who exchanged personal insults with Trump on Monday, dismissed the proposal to rename the lake as “a lot of rhetoric” and called for the two countries to return to negotiations.

In an interview with CNN, Ford acknowledged that the dispute had “got a little personal” and said it was time to reduce tensions. He argued that the trade conflict was hurting both countries and urged them to “get back to the table” to negotiate.

A name that predates the US and Canada

Lake Ontario's name has roots that stretch back well before the creation of either modern nation.

The name is derived from a Huron Indigenous term, “oniatari,” meaning “lake of shining waters.” The province of Ontario, established in 1867, was itself named after the lake.

There is no single international authority with the power to dictate the names of shared bodies of water around the world. The International Hydrographic Organization, of which both Canada and the United States are members, helps establish consistent surveying and charting standards and is involved in naming some geographic features.

For some residents, there is little reason to change a name that has endured for centuries.

“It's been like that for so long, so, why do we need to change it?” said Nancy Minard, an Ontario resident. “It seems to work for Canada and I think probably works for the U.S., too.”

Trump's proposal does have some support south of the border.

“I like it. Absolutely. Because I like America, and right now Canada's not treating us very nicely,” said Jim Fetterhoff, a resident and fisherman in Port Ontario in upstate New York.

Fetterhoff pointed to Canadian tariffs on dairy and other products as the reason for his support, while distinguishing his criticism of Canada's government from his view of its people.

“just the Canadian government. I love Canadians,” he said.

Trump has targeted names as well as neighbours

The Lake Ontario proposal is the latest example of Trump's broader campaign to reshape how geographic landmarks are officially referred to in the United States.

Canada and Mexico, America's two largest trading partners, have both faced Trump's pressure over trade, immigration and crime during his second term. Trump has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state, a proposal that Canadian officials, including Carney, have rejected and mocked.

On the day of his second inauguration, Trump signed an executive order seeking to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America”, fulfilling a pledge from his 2024 presidential campaign. The gulf is shared by the United States and Mexico, but Mexico and numerous international organisations have not adopted Trump's preferred name.

The dispute over geographic names has precedent in the United States itself.

In 2015, President Barack Obama changed the official U.S. name of Alaska's Mount McKinley back to Denali, its historical name used by Alaska Natives and preferred by many Alaskans. Trump reversed that decision on the same day he ordered the Gulf of Mexico renamed, restoring Mount McKinley in honour of what he called “a great president.”

The shifting names in Alaska could offer a glimpse of what might happen to any proposed “Lake America” designation after Trump leaves office.

“He's not going to be in the presidency forever,” Wiseman said.

With inputs from AP