ABSTRACT

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order at the Oval Office on Thursday, August 27, 2026, directing that Lake Ontario — the body of water on the border between the Canadian province of Ontario and the US state of New York — be renamed 'Lake America,' linking the move explicitly to ongoing trade tensions with Canada. Trump told reporters the change was 'effective immediately,' though the text of the order gives the secretary of the interior 30 days to work on the name change with the Board on Geographic Names.

Al Jazeera English

Trump signs executive order renaming Lake Ontario to 'Lake America' amid trade war with Canada

Aug 28, 2026, 10:36 AM

Context

Trump signed the order during a news conference at the White House, holding up a map on which he had written 'Lake America' in marker. He said Canada 'has been ripping us off for a long time' and that 'Canadian officials have treated us very badly.' The move follows the US imposing 50 percent tariffs on nearly $20 billion worth of Canadian goods, according to multiple sources. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced retaliatory tariffs on US goods set to take effect on September 8.

The name 'Lake Ontario' is believed to derive from the Wendat language of the Huron Indigenous people, with meanings variously understood as 'lake of shining waters,' 'great lake,' or 'beautiful lake,' according to Al Jazeera. The name first appeared as 'Lac Ontario' on maps in the 17th century, replacing earlier French names. Canadian Prime Minister Carney noted on X that the name is more than 400 years old, predating both Canadian Confederation and the US Declaration of Independence.

Derek Alderman, chancellor's professor of geography at the University of Tennessee, told Al Jazeera that the executive order represents 'an attempt at erasing Indigenous culture from the map' and reflects 'a decidedly neocolonial geographic imagination.' He also said he does not anticipate the name change will assist in the trade dispute, and suggested it could damage the United States' ability to negotiate by inflaming opinion in Canada.

Alderman further noted that the order does not bind US private entities — companies, nonprofits, or news outlets — to use the new name, and that historical research shows a disconnect can develop between an official renaming and usage by ordinary people, which can lessen the practical force of a federal mandate.

During the signing, Trump also referenced his earlier executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the 'Gulf of America' and suggested he might rename the Atlantic and Pacific oceans as well, according to The Independent.

The Great Lakes, which support approximately 40 million people in the region, have long been the focus of US-Canada scientific collaboration, according to CBC News. That collaboration has already been under strain, with the Trump administration having made major cuts to agencies including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency, affecting monitoring and research in the Great Lakes. CBC News also reported that scientists at a US weather forecasting agency were ordered to seek clearance before speaking with Canadian counterparts.

Despite those cuts, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative — a two-decade-old program funding ecosystem restoration and industrial pollution cleanup — received bipartisan support in the US House of Representatives, which voted to reauthorize it through 2031 with nearly $500 million US in federal funding per year. The measure is now before the US Senate, according to CBC News.

In Detroit, Michigan, where roughly $1 billion in goods crosses daily to Windsor, Ontario, the tariff escalation has generated widespread concern, according to The Guardian. Michigan residents oppose tariffs on Canadian goods by a 63 percent to 31 percent margin, including 35 percent of Republicans, according to a June Epic-MRA poll cited by The Guardian. The same poll found nearly 75 percent of Michiganders say tariffs are fueling higher prices. Economist Patrick Anderson of the Anderson Economic Group estimated that tariffs cost US auto companies approximately $12.5 billion in 2025 and that Michiganders pay on average over $3,200 annually because of the state's shared border with Canada.

During an NFL preseason game broadcast on Amazon Prime Video on Thursday, veteran commentator Al Michaels, 81, made an on-air reference to the renaming while the camera showed Lake Erie in the background of Cleveland's stadium. 'That is Lake Erie. We think it is still called Lake Erie… We're not quite sure at this point,' Michaels said, adding that the broadcast would 'be by Lake something like Ontario or whatever it's going to be called by the time we get to Buffalo,' according to the New York Post.

All Perspectives

US President Donald Trump: Trump said the change would be 'effective immediately' and linked it to trade tensions with Ottawa, claiming Canada 'has been ripping us off for a long time' and that 'Canadian officials have treated us very badly. They're nasty people.' He also said: 'We filed all the necessary papers, documents, everything else. We notified all of the various people that we have to notify. So we've done everything that you have to do, and this is official, effective immediately.' During the signing, he suggested he might also rename the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney: Carney dismissed the order on X, writing: 'The name is more than 400 years old, predating both the Confederation of Canada and the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America. Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario – then, now and always.'

Ontario Premier Doug Ford: Ford wrote on X: 'It's Lake Ontario to Canadians and the rest of the world. Now and forever.'

Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston: Houston wrote on X: 'We're into some real foolishness now. It's Lake Ontario, buddy.'

New York Governor Kathy Hochul: Hochul refused to use the new name, writing on X in response to the White House announcement: 'New York won't be calling it that.'

Derek Alderman, University of Tennessee (geography): Alderman told Al Jazeera that Trump's order represents 'an attempt at erasing Indigenous culture from the map, exerting not just an America-first ideology across the continent but a decidedly neocolonial geographic imagination in which the map and its names become tools for narrowing whose histories and contributions matter.' He added that he does not anticipate the change will help in the trade war and that 'the Lake America mandate is inflaming opinions and defensive posture anxieties in Canada,' potentially damaging US negotiating ability.

MSNOW anchor Chris Hayes: Hayes called Trump 'deeply pathetic' over the renaming, describing 'this old man sitting at his desk with a little Sharpie, reduced to a state of total delusion.' He concluded: 'Lake America? You sad weirdo. Nobody wants this. You know what they want? They want cheaper gas.'

United Auto Workers (UAW): The UAW, which has 350,000 members in Michigan, said in a statement it 'rejects' the latest tariff escalation, with president Shawn Fain saying: 'If we're going to increase tariffs anywhere, it should be on countries where automakers continue to offshore jobs because they can pay workers $3 an hour, force them to work in unsafe conditions, and crack down on independent unions.' Fain added: 'Tariffs work, but only if they are deployed intentionally to protect workers and grow our manufacturing communities.'

Abdul El-Sayed, Democratic Michigan Senate candidate: El-Sayed said in a statement that Trump 'cares more about his ego and saber-rattling than addressing the affordability crisis,' adding: 'Donald Trump is launching this trade war for his own vanity, and he's asking Michigan families to pay the price. Trump has been failing Michigan through these chaotic tariffs and bad trade deals for far too long, and Mike Rogers won't do anything but rubber-stamp them.' He said he would push for 'real, fair trade deals that create good-paying jobs.'

Patrick Anderson, Anderson Economic Group: Anderson described the actions leading to the latest escalation as 'rife with miscalculations, overreactions, and hubris,' and characterised the list of tariffed goods — including feathers, sweaters, girls' dresses, and lobster — as 'not a trade war. This is an annoyance list. Chest pounding.' He said both the US and Canadian economies 'will suffer — there are no two ways about it,' though Canada's smaller and more concentrated economy would be hit harder.

Aaron Fisk, Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research, University of Windsor: Fisk told CBC News: 'The way that this current administration in the United States views the environment and views science is demoralizing. With the U.S. moving away from evidence-based decisions about the environment … that's a real concern to me because we need them to be a world leader. This really goes against their long term investment in good science.'

Joel Brammeier, Alliance for the Great Lakes: Brammeier told CBC News: 'The water does not respect political boundaries, and you have to manage it as a water body, as a watershed, not just as a national or state or provincial boundary. Which is why it's always a bit painful when we see somebody out of the U.S. side challenging that collaboration. Because, honestly, the Great Lakes don't get cleaned up and they don't get protected unless the U.S. and Canada collaborate and co-operate.'

Mike Shriberg, University of Michigan Water Center: Shriberg told CBC News that water availability and access are emerging challenges, noting: 'This summer's a great example. We've had increasing drought and then increasing intensity of precipitation. So water flows have changed because of climate change,' with future demand from data centres, power generation, and agriculture posing additional pressures.

Al Michaels, NFL broadcaster: While calling the Patriots-Browns preseason game on Amazon Prime Video, Michaels said on air: 'That is Lake Erie. We think it is still called Lake Erie… We're not quite sure at this point. But we'll be by Lake something like Ontario or whatever it's going to be called by the time we get to Buffalo. Anyway, you know what I'm talking about… Read the news.'

Mike Rogers, Republican Michigan Senate candidate: According to The Guardian, Rogers has supported tariffs generally but had been silent on the latest escalation. His campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Position not represented in the source reporting: US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, who is named in the executive order as responsible for implementing the change but whose position or response is absent from all sources; The Board on Geographic Names, the body tasked with formally processing the name change, whose views are not represented in any source.

Where sources differ

On the immediacy of the name change: Trump told reporters the change was 'effective immediately,' but Al Jazeera reports that the actual text of the executive order gives the secretary of the interior 30 days to work on the change with the Board on Geographic Names.
On the tariff figure's framing: Al Jazeera and The Independent describe the US as having imposed 50 percent tariffs on 'nearly $20 billion worth of Canadian goods,' while The Guardian describes them as '50% tariffs on Canadian goods this week' without specifying the dollar figure in the same terms. CBC News does not specify the tariff level or dollar amount.

Gaps & Unknowns

Whether the Board on Geographic Names will ultimately approve or reject the renaming, and on what timeline.
The legal basis or limits of a US president's authority to unilaterally rename a body of water shared with a foreign country.
Whether any international body, such as the International Hydrographic Bureau, will recognise the new name or has formally responded.
Canada's full diplomatic or governmental response beyond social media posts by the prime minister and premiers.
The specific goods included in the US 50 percent tariff list and the full scope of Canada's retaliatory measures announced for September 8.
Whether the Trump administration has formally notified Canada or international bodies of the name change, beyond Trump's statement that 'all necessary papers' were filed.
The position of the US State Department or other federal agencies on the diplomatic implications of the renaming.
Whether the collapse of trade talks in August was definitively confirmed or remains disputed; Trump's claim on Truth Social that a deal had been reached is noted by The Independent but not verified by the other sources.
The response, if any, of Indigenous communities whose language is the origin of the name 'Ontario.'

Sources & Further Reading

Al Jazeera English — original — by Sarah Shamim
The Guardian — by Tom Perkins in Detroit
The Independent — by Owen Scott
CBC News — by Inayat Singh
New York Post — by Thomas Gamba-Ellis

Read the original at Al Jazeera English

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