President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing his administration to change Lake Ontario to Lake America, marking the latest move to change the names of various landmarks and bodies of water in and around the United States.
The move comes amid a rapidly escalating trade war with Canada. The order, which Trump signed in the Oval Office on Aug. 27, directs the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to formalize the change within 30 days.
"If you think about it, we have a gulf, and we have a lake; now all we need is an ocean," Trump said. "So maybe we'll have to change the name of the Atlantic and/or the Pacific."
Trump’s proposed change to the name of Lake Ontario would not be the first time someone changed
the name of the body of water, which sits on the border between the Canadian province of Ontario to the north and New York to the south. In the 17th century, as French explorers introduced other names for the lake, it was once referred to as Lac de St. Louis or Lake St. Louis.
Although Lake Ontario forms the shoreline of Toronto, Canada's largest city, White House staff secretary Ben Moss said most of the lake's volume, including its deepest parts, is in U.S. territory.
"This will reflect that this is an American lake," Moss said.
Lake Ontario is also the smallest of the five Great Lakes by surface area, covering about 7,340 square miles. It is also the second-smallest Great Lake by volume, holding about 393 cubic miles of water, according to the National Museum of the Great Lakes. Additionally, the lake, formed thousands of years ago as glaciers carved the Great Lakes basin during the last ice age, is a prime destination for boating, fishing, bird-watching and swimming, with parks and beaches along its shores.
Ontario, a lake and province
Lake Ontario's name, which goes back to the 17th century, comes from the native Iroquois tribe's word "Ontarí'io," meaning "lake of shining waters," according to the Center for Great Lakes Literacy (CGLL).
"Indigenous peoples have long been stewards of Lake Ontario (Niigani-gichigami), and they help ensure the lake’s life-giving resources remain abundant and cared for much like family," the CGLL said.
The word Niigani-gichigami is the Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe) word for Lake Ontario.
According to the Government of Canada, the earliest recording of the name Ontario was in 1641, when it was “used to describe a mass of land on the north shore of the easternmost part of the Great Lakes.” Today, Ontario is Canada's second-largest and most populous province.
In response to Trump's recent order, Mélanie Joly, Canada's minister of industry, said: "We'll always call it Lake Ontario. Period. We're proud of our Great Lakes."
Trump's order only applies to the U.S. government. Canada is not required to adopt the new name, and Canadian officials have said they will continue to refer to the lake as Lake Ontario.
Why are the US and Canada going back and forth?
The United States and Canada are currently in a trade war that Trump reignited when his administration imposed 50% tariffs on select Canadian imports. He also threatened to double U.S. tariffs on all cars, trucks, automotive parts and steel imported from Canada next January – a move that would also raise that rate to 50%.
"Canada has been 'Ripping Off' the U.S.A. for decades," Trump wrote in an Aug. 25 post on Truth Social. "I deal with many countries, and Canada is easily the most difficult and unreasonable. They feel entitled, but they are not a State, and will be entitled no longer!"
In response, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced dollar-for-dollar counter-tariffs scheduled to take effect on Sept. 8. He said the tariffs will be concentrated in sectors including steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper and electronics.
During an Aug. 22 news conference, Carney said the United States' proposed terms were "uneconomic, unfair, and undermined the net benefits for Canada. "In short, they asked too much, and they offered too little," he added.
USA TODAY’s Joey Garrison & Rachel Barber contributed to this report.
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@usatodayco.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Ontario' is more than a province or lake. See origin of the name
