North America's tallest mountain will no longer be known as "Mount McKinley," but will instead be called "Denali," the White House announced on Sunday as President Obama was preparing for a trip to Alaska.

The designation of the 20,000-foot mountain will revert to the Native American nomenclature used by the Koyukon Athabascan people who inhabit the area around it. Obama's decision marked a "major symbolic gesture" but also "waded into a sensitive and decades-old conflict between residents of Alaska and Ohio," the Associated Press commented.

Ohioans have long defended the 1917 renaming of the mountain in honor of President William McKinley, who had previously served as the Buckeye State's governor and represented Ohio in Congress. Unsurprisingly, Ohio lawmakers reacted angrily to the White House's announcement.

"Mount McKinley ... has held the name of our nation's 25th President for over 100 years. This landmark is a testament to his countless years of service to our country," Ohio Rep. Bob Gibbs said. "This political stunt is insulting to all Ohioans, and I will be working with the House Committee on Natural Resources to determine what can be done to prevent this action."

But Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who for years had pushed legislation to change the name, said her fellow residents were honored to recognize the mountain as Denali. The state had officially requested reverting to the original designation, which translates as "the high one," as early as 1975.

"I'd like to thank the president for working with us to achieve this significant change to show honor, respect, and gratitude to the Athabascan people of Alaska," Murkowski said in a video message recorded atop the mountain's Ruth Glacier.

Nevertheless, the Ohio congressional delegation questioned whether Obama even had the constitutional authority to order the name change, Gibbs noted. Sen. Rob Portman blasted the decision as "yet another example of the President going around Congress, and House Speaker John Boehner, also an Ohioan, said that he was "deeply disappointed in this decision."