On January 20, 2025, an executive order by President Trump mandated the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America and Denali to Mount McKinley, citing the importance of honoring American heritage. Denali, which means 'the great one' in the Koyukon Athabascan language, holds significant cultural importance for locals. Alaskan Native leaders, such as Miranda Wright from the Denaa tribe, argue that renaming the mountain disrespects their identity and connection to the land, leading to bipartisan efforts to preserve the original name.
It's our sacred mountain and to us it's always Denali, says Miranda Wright, an Alaska Native and a member of the Denaa tribe of Interior Alaska. Wright is an elder with a Master's degree in cultural anthropology and possesses extensive knowledge of the legends and customs of the Denaa. "We have stories of the great journeys that our people take, climbing up what we refer to as the glass mountain because of all the glaciers. As our loved ones depart and go on to the next world, one of the last challenges or hurdles that they have is to climb that glass mountain. The name is very near and dear to us, and it's an insult to..."
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