Canada delivers a blunt message to Trump over Lake Ontario
Donald Trump, President of the US (photo: Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump has officially renamed Lake Ontario, the body of water separating the US and Canada, as "Lake America." But Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded with dignity, issuing a pointed reminder of the lake's historical roots, according to a post on his official X account.
The Canadian leader wrote that the name Ontario derives from the Wendat (Huron) word Ontari'io, which - fittingly enough - means beautiful lake or great lake.
Carney noted that the name is more than four centuries old, having emerged long before the formation of the Canadian Confederation and the proclamation of American independence.
We know that America is changing. Their trading relationships, their foreign policies, their national monuments, their hydronyms. Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario – then, now and always," Carney said.
The US president signed an executive order before journalists to rename Lake Ontario, which separates the two countries. Before that, he did it with his own hands, simply crossing out the name on a map and writing Lake America with a marker.
News context
Relations between the US and Canada have deteriorated sharply after Trump imposed trade tariffs on Canadian goods. The tariffs reach up to 50% on products from Canada.
Early in his second presidential term, Trump repeatedly insulted Canada, calling it the 51st state and referring to then‑Prime Minister Trudeau as a governor.
In response, Canada imposed dollar‑for‑dollar tariffs on American goods. The scale of Canada's new counter‑tariffs matches the US duties and will cover the goods subject to US tariffs.
