Even if Trump says he will call the Gulf of Mexico by a new name, whether the world will actually follow that name is another matter.

The U.S. federal government's geographic information system allows the Secretary of the Interior to change the name of a specific place within U.S. territory or documents, but this change only applies within the United States. Moreover, the Gulf of Mexico is not just a U.S. waterway; it is shared with several countries, including Mexico.

Since Mexico and other countries are not obligated to use the newly established name from the U.S. side, the likelihood of that name changing in the international community is low. Historically, it has often happened that different countries use different names for international waters or border areas. For example, the river called Rio Grande in the U.S. is referred to as Rio Bravo in Mexico, and the sea between Korea and Japan is referred to as the East Sea and the Sea of Japan, respectively.

Of course, it seems unlikely that Mexico will officially follow this, and the chances of international organizations recognizing it as an international standard name also appear low. In short, while a limited name change within the U.S. is possible, whether the world will use that name together is an entirely different issue.

Ultimately, this controversy over name changes is not a new phenomenon; it commonly occurs between countries that share borders or maritime boundaries. Because national interests are intertwined, it is not easy to reach an agreement, and the names used will inevitably differ based on each country's language and cultural background. Therefore, the answer to the question, "Can we call the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America?" would be, "It can be done within U.S. documents, but it is hard to guarantee that everyone internationally will call it that."

To put it more simply, the key issue is how much impact changing the name in internal documents will have. Trump's idea may have significant political implications, but it is likely that it will not be used outside the U.S., so the actual impact will be limited.

Because such conflicts occur from time to time, the unification of place names is not as easy as one might think, and the fact that many countries have already been using different names according to their own languages and cultures is the most important point.