Why rename Denali? An adventurous guide to naming mountains

Donald Trump was accused of making a molehill out of a mountain this week, ordering America’s tallest summit be renamed. But Mt Denali isn’t the only big mountain suffering an identity crisis as a new wave of landmarks face being renamed for political reasons.

Now climbers, adventure seekers and local authorities are asking: ‘Who gets to decide what a mountain is called?’

Denali, a 6190 metre-tall massif in Alaska, is one of several pieces of geography that were subject to an executive order by president Trump.

The move returns the official name to Mt McKinley on maps, laws and signage. Named in 1917 for president Will McKinley the mountain’s moniker was changed again to Denali in 2015 – to reflect the indigenous Alaskan name, meaning the “Big One”. 

Whatever you call it, it’s a big headache for those trying to navigate the area. 

On Monday the world’s most popular app for getting from A to B, Google Maps, said it would be renaming the mountain along with changing the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America.”

Similarly news agency AP said it would be following the White House’s lead, as  “the area lies solely in the United States and as president, Trump has the authority to change federal geographical names within the country.”

Some saw the naming convention as a mountain they would die on.

Jon Krakauer, author of the Alaskan adventure novel Into the Wild, said he had only known it by one name.

“I intend to continue to refer to the great mountain as Denali for as long as I’m alive, and I encourage every other climber to do the same,” Krakauer wrote to Outdoor Magazine. 

“Trump might be able to officially rename it, but he will never be able to force me to call it anything except Denali.”

McKinley / Denali isn’t the only high-altitude mountain to be hijacked for identity politics.  

The highest peak in Wales was recently renamed to reflect local language. Mt Snowdon was renamed “Yr Wyddfa” at the end of 2022. 

Pronounced “uhr with-va”, it took over as the official name for the pinnacle and the Snowdon national park was rebranded “Eyri”. Despite few visitors being able to say it.

This news came after the UK census showed that just under 540,000 people in the UK could speak Welsh. At 17 per cent of Wales or 0.7 per cent of the United Kingdom, the language is at its lowest ebb on record. The number of speakers has continued to shrink since 2001, according to the Welsh Language Commissioner. The Snowdon / Yr Wyddfa rename was described as a stand against culture loss.

Despite being a “tiddler” compared to the Denali / McKinley massif, naming mountains continues to be a big issue. From Harlech to the Himalayas, tourists are having to tread carefully around what they call their next trip. 

No matter what is drawn on the map. The biggest decider of a mountain’s name will always be those climbing them.

Who gets to name a mountain?

Contrary to popular belief, the first person to summit a mountain does not get naming rights.

The process of naming a previously unnamed mountain is surprisingly involved.  

Before you set off to plant your flag on an unclaimed summit, there are a few things to take into account. Especially if there are already known names for a mountain.

Conrad Anker, arguably America’s best known big mountain climber, said he would continue to be in the “Danali” camp when it came to Alaska’s biggest peak. Though he was more philosophical about the possibility of mountains having many names. 

“It was fitting to honor the people of Alaska with the rightful name,” he told Outside Magazine. “I think it’s worth noting that the vast majority of peaks in the Himalayas have local names.”

Everest for example is referred to as Sagarmatha in Nepal or Chomolungma in Tibet.

However, there’s one name that leaps to mind when you ask which is the tallest mountain in the world. Even Anker refers to it as “Everest”, when he writes about his expeditions retracing the footsteps of Mallory and Irvine.

Named for Sir George Everest, the surveyor-general of British India, Sir George never actually saw the mountain himself. It was instead a way of currying favour by members of the Royal Geographical Society. Previously the world’s tallest summit was recorded simply as Peak XV. 

Thus far the RGS surveying team had simply numbered the summits, having “no name intelligible to civilised men.” In the post-colonial age, this dismissive 1850s attitude rubs many mountaineers the wrong way. However, there have been no serious attempts by either Kathmandu or Lhasa to reclaim the name of Everest.

“Everest” is still the name and the biggest draw at the centre of Nepal’s mountain tourism industry. As an internationally known landmark, there is value in knowing Sagarmatha by many names. 

Given Kathmandu increased the climbing by more than a third this year, a more cynical person might say: “Pay $15,000 to climb it, you can call it what you want.”

In New Zealand the practice is to give both English and Maori names for mountains. Aoraki / Mt Cook was first officially recognised as such by the Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998. The South Island iwi argued that landmarks “tohu whenua” should incorporate Māori and European names following Te Tiriti Waitangi principles. It is a multicultural compromise for a country with multiple cultural viewpoints.

It might sound like a mouthful – but there’s something beautiful about the double-barred name for New Zealand’s tallest “maunga”.  

Though as New Zealand’s com Treaty Principles Bill gets ready to be heard later this year, it seems that the names of places and mountains are likely to get more politicised. 

From Alaska to Aotearoa / New Zealand there is an atmosphere of heightened tension about what a particular mountain should, or should not, be called. Something that seems trivial when actually amongst the mountains themselves.

At tens of millions of years old, they’re likely to still be around long after we’ve forgotten their names.

The beginners guide to naming a mountain:

Got your sights on a grand mountaineering conquest?  Here’s the guide to naming “unnamed natural features” according to the US Board on Geographic Names. Before you head off in search of the next Denali, bear in mind: 

According to the USGS  “a potential honoree must have been deceased for at least five years and must have had either a direct and long-term association with the feature or must have made notable civic contributions.” 

Any proposed name will require consultation with local, tribal, county representatives.

Of course this is only the process for mountains located in the US. The appropriate local naming authority will depend on your peak of choosing. In cases where there is disagreement, such as the ‘Gulf of Mexico/Gulf of America’ debacle, there is a United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names to help resolve these differences. Don’t hold your breath.