I am writing in reference to the article in the Feb. 5 issue titled, “A Gulf by any other name.”
The so-called president can wield his Sharpie and declare that it’s the Gulf of America, but it has been the Gulf of Mexico for over 400 years and in researching, there are 3,545 miles of shoreline, over half of which borders Mexico. The southernmost part of the Gulf wraps around Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula, which so far is not a part of America.
Renaming geographical place names is the work of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, which has the power to rename geographic places within the U.S… not the president. The board discourages name changes unless there is a compelling reason.
Also, changes would not necessarily be binding on the states bordering the Gulf or for other countries.
So, to the majority of Americans, in all of the countries around the world, it will remain in the Gulf of Mexico!
Kate Eglee
Orleans, MA
