President Donald Trump signed an executive order Jan. 20, 2025 naming the highest peak in North America once again Mount McKinley, after decades being known by its more indigenous-friendly and potent name, Denali. This is a step backward because President Barack Obama reinstated the name Denali in 2015 to respect the Koyukon Athabascan people who have called it Denali for thousands of years. He went back to the name Mount McKinley as he is a fan of the 25th president, William McKinley, who had pro-tariff policies.
Key Takeaways:
- Change the Name to Denali: He renamed Denali as Mount McKinley by releasing an executive order, so that legacy of William McKinley could be remembered. After his second Inaugural address speech, he pointed out that to revive the name "of a great president," he needed to make it.
- Historical Background: Denali was named Mount McKinley in 1896 by prospector William Dickey after then-presidential candidate McKinley. However, the local Koyukon Athabascan people who lived near the mountain called it Denali, which means "the Great One." There have been many attempts over the years to reinstate its original name, and this was finally achieved in 2015 when Obama officially renamed it Denali.
- Senators of Alaska Oppose it: Alaska has two Republican senators who oppose renaming the mountain, Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan. They assert that the mountain cannot be named differently because Denali was named by indigenous Koyukon Athabascan for thousands of years.
- Respect for McKinley: Trump respects William McKinley mainly because McKinley started tariffs in America, especially the McKinley Tariff of 1890 that brought duties to a very high level on most imported goods. Trump has always supported the rising of tariffs to defend American interest.
- Other General Trump Rename Efforts: Other than that he issued an executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico as Gulf of America. This is among the several decisions taken by him after the president claimed the former as revenge due to the inflow of illegal immigrants from Mexico.
- What's Next: The US Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) will grant approval to name change within 30 days.
Criticism and Support:
Alaska lawmakers criticized this move by the president Trump in that Denali should remain so since it refers to the Native name, whereas supporters of Donald Trump say legacy of McKinley should remain that way since McKinley was an advocate of Tariff.
This is part of the broad policy interests of Trump, especially in terms of tariffs and national identity, and the problem will continue to provoke debate on whether to retain the historical names or cultural meaning.
