What’s in a name? Rochester residents have called Lake Ontario by that name for centuries. Lake Ontario is one of five great lakes located along the U.S-Canada border. The other Great Lakes are Lake Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie. However, Lake Ontario is the closest lake to RIT, and its name is now being questioned.
In Executive Order 14422, President Trump renamed Lake Ontario to Lake America, following disagreements with Canada over trade policies. This is on the heels of his renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
Yet, despite the fact that one of Canada’s provinces is named Ontario, Lake Ontario is not a Canadian name; the word Ontario has roots in the Indigenous languages of this area, dating back centuries.
The earliest known record of the word is found in 1641, where French Jesuit missionary Jérôme Lalemant wrote the word “Ontario” in a document called Jesuit Relation. Although historians dispute the exact origins of the word, it most likely originates from the Wendat people, also called the Huron-Wyandot people. In the Wendat language, Ontario translates to “great lake” or “beautiful lake.” Another speculated origin comes from the Haudenosaunee words kanadario or skanadario, which mean “sparkling water” and “beautiful water” respectively.
Lake Ontario’s renaming has sparked outrage in the Wendat Nation, which is currently in Quebec, Canada, though historically, they lived from St. Lawrence Valley to the Great Lakes. Wendat Nation Grand Chief Pierre Picard called it an attempt to eradicate the history of the region. Picard hopes mapping companies do not change the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America, even as several companies already have.
Both Google Maps and Apple have renamed the lake. The Geographic Names Information System, a database that is used to standardize all federal geographic names, has also renamed the lake. However, MapQuest, one of the earliest digital maps, refused to change the name to Lake of America. Since refusing to change the name, MapQuest became number one on the App Store.
Both the Seneca nation and N.Y. Gov. Kathy Hochul, refused to acknowledge the lake’s new name. The Seneca Nation said that the name change violates the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua — a 225-year-old treaty — and shows disrespect to Indigenous people.
The Rochester City Council, who sets ordinances and resolutions in the city of Rochester, also disagrees with this name change as well. In response to President Trump’s executive action, the Rochester City Council issued a proclamation to keep the name Lake Ontario. While a proclamation doesn’t have the same legal weight as a presidential executive action, it is still an important public statement.
U.S. Rep. Joe Morelle introduced the “Hands off Our Great Lakes Act” on Aug. 31, which would prohibit the President, Secretary of the Interior or any other federal official from changing the names of the Great Lakes. It would effectively nullify Executive Order 14422.
“We don’t feel that any president, with the stroke of a pen, should just be able to come in and change the names of our bodies of water, especially shared bodies of water with other countries,” Miguel A. Meléndaz, President of the Rochester City Council, said. Not only does the word’s origin predate the forming of America and the Declaration of Independence, but it would also cost a significant amount to change the name on all signs and wording used in Rochester.
“It’s a waste of resources at a time when we have no resources to waste,” Meléndaz explained. Instead, the government should focus on what matters to people, such as improving the economy and getting inflation under control.
“Students should know that this is just another exercise in creating distraction and division,” Meléndaz continued. “The real issues of the cost of housing, the cost of groceries, our energy bills, the cost of gas, all these things are what truly matters and what I think government should be focused on trying to lower, not renaming a body of water just because you disagree with another government on a trade.”
Andrew Forys, a first year software engineering major at RIT, also regards the decision as a distraction. “It’s just a waste of resources to try to do something that doesn’t really hold much standing on the international stage.”
Regarding the name change, Shane Mackarell, second year imaging science major, said “Personally, I don’t really like it mostly because I grew up hearing the name Lake Ontario.” Although Mackerel is from New York City, he has family living in the area. “It wasn’t really considered how it would affect everybody,” he said. “It just seemed like it was a quick…”
If students want to contact their congressperson, they can reach them several ways. If students are from the Greater Rochester area, their congressional leaders are Rep. Morelle, Sen. Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. Students with a voting jurisdiction outside Rochester can find their congressional leaders by searching for them on Congress’s website.
