In a move that has left many scratching their heads, President-elect Donald Trump has announced his intention to revert the name of North America’s tallest peak from Denali back to Mount McKinley. This decision aims to honor the 25th U.S. president, William McKinley, who, interestingly enough, never set foot in Alaska.

For those keeping track, the mountain was named Mount McKinley in 1896 by a gold prospector who admired McKinley’s support for the gold standard. Fast forward to 2015, and President Barack Obama officially changed the name to Denali, aligning with the indigenous Athabascan name meaning ‘the high one’ or ‘the great one.’

Now, Trump, ever the traditionalist, wants to roll back the clock. ‘McKinley was a very good, maybe a great president,’ Trump remarked during a rally in Phoenix. ‘They took his name off Mount McKinley, right? That’s what they do to people.’

One might wonder why a mountain in Alaska was named after an Ohioan president in the first place. McKinley had no significant historical connection to the mountain or to Alaska. Yet, for over a century, his name adorned the peak.

The 2015 renaming to Denali was seen as a nod to Alaska Natives and their rich cultural heritage. Various tribes of Athabascan people have lived in the shadow of the 20,310-foot mountain for thousands of years, referring to it as Denali long before any prospector decided to christen it after a politician.

Trump’s proposal has already met with resistance. Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who had long advocated for the name Denali, stated, ‘There is only one name worthy of North America’s tallest mountain: Denali – the Great One.’

It’s worth noting that this isn’t the first time Trump has floated the idea. Back in 2016, he suggested he might undo Obama’s action but dropped the notion after Alaska’s senators objected …

So, why the sudden interest in renaming a mountain? Perhaps it’s a symbolic gesture, a way to reclaim what some see as a lost legacy. Or maybe it’s just another example of political theater, a distraction from more pressing issues.

In the grand scheme of things, does the name of a mountain really matter? To some, it’s a reflection of cultural respect and recognition. To others, it’s a testament to historical figures and their contributions.

But let’s be honest, the mountain itself remains indifferent. Whether called Denali or Mount McKinley, it stands tall, impervious to the whims of politics.

As this debate unfolds, one can’t help but wonder: what’s next on the agenda? Renaming the Grand Canyon? Rebranding the Statue of Liberty? In an era where symbolism often trumps substance, it’s anyone’s guess.

For now, we’ll watch as the political winds blow, reshaping not the landscape, but the names we assign to it. After all, in the world of politics, even a mountain isn’t safe from rebranding.