¿Puede Trump realmente cambiar el nombre al Golfo de México?

Territory shared between Mexico, the US and Cuba

States and provinces with coastline on the Gulf

It has been called the 'Gulf of Mexico' since the 16th century

The Board may approve or reject new names

Taylor Greene says she’ll introduce a bill to make it happen

It can have a different name for each country

¿Golfo de América?

En una reciente conferencia de prensa, el presidente electo de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, anunció, entre otras controversiales declaraciones, su intención de renombrar el Golfo de México como Golfo de América.

Mexican America

A day later, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum replied, saying: "Why don't we call the United States Mexican America? It sounds nice, doesn't it?" while showing a map from 1607 in which part of the United States belonged to Mexico.

As stated in an old constitution

Sheinbaum added that in 1607, the Constitution of Apatzingán called that territory ‘Mexican America’. “ So, we are going to call it that,” she said jokingly, according to Mexican media reports.

Territory shared between Mexico, the US and Cuba

The Gulf of Mexico is an ocean basin contained between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, shared by the eastern coasts of Mexico, the southeastern United States and western Cuba.

States and provinces with coastline on the Gulf

Five Mexican states and five US states have coastlines on the Gulf, as well as two Cuban provinces. These are: Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco, Campeche and Yucatán in Mexico; Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas in the US; and the Cuban provinces of Pinar del Río and Artemisa.

International border limit agreements

There are international maritime border delimitation agreements established by organizations such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea between the United States, Mexico and Cuba.

Photo: Thomas Vimare/Unsplash

It has been called the 'Gulf of Mexico' since the 16th century

The name first appeared on European maps in the 16th century and has been used for more than 400 years, a fact that Sheinbaum also presented in her mocking response to Trump.

Can Trump change the name?

In theory, Trump would need the approval of the countries that occupy the Gulf alongside the US (Mexico and Cuba), in addition to the approval of certain international organizations to make it happen.

He could do it unilaterally

However, it would be possible for the United States to change the name unilaterally even if other countries do not recognize it, according to a BBC article.

United States Board on Geographic Names

This is because in the United States there are mechanisms for renaming places recognized by the federal government, such as the United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN).

Establish and maintain use of names

The purpose of the BGN is to establish and maintain the uniform use of geographic names throughout the federal government.

The Board may approve or reject new names

And although the Board does not create names for geographic places, it can approve or reject new names proposed by federal agencies, state or local governments, and even the public.

Taylor Greene says she’ll introduce a bill to make it happen

Although Trump did not give details of when he would carry out the name change, Republican legislator Marjorie Taylor Greene said she would introduce a bill to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico on the social network X.

“Introducing legislation ASAP”

"President Trump's second term is off to a GREAT start," Greene wrote. "I will be introducing legislation ASAP to officially change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to its rightful name, the Gulf of America!"

It can have a different name for each country

So in conclusion, the name might change for Americans, but not for the rest of the world, least of all, for Mexicans. Furthermore, this would not be the first example of a border place having a different name for the two countries…

Rio Grande or Rio Bravo

The river that runs along the border between the United States and Mexico, and one of the most dangerous crossings for migrants, is known as the Rio Grande to Americans, but Mexicans call it Rio Bravo.

Never miss a story! Click here to follow The Daily Digest.