Shakespeare might be right that “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet,” but the leaders of New Jersey’s largest museum felt that changing its name was an important part of shaping its identity. The Newark Museum announced on Wednesday that it would now be known as the Newark Museum of Art.

Linda Harrison, the museum’s chief executive and director, explained that the decision to change its name was driven by both practical and philosophical considerations. Surveys conducted by the museum revealed that a large portion of its prospective audience was confused about what type of museum the Newark Museum was. “The data really helped drive home that we want to be clear and have people be clear about what we are and what they can expect,” she said in an interview.

Among the 110-year-old museum’s most significant holdings are its collection of Tibetan art, considered to be one of the most significant in the Western Hemisphere, and its collection of American art, which includes work from the colonial era and the 19th century Hudson River School of painting as well as modern pieces by Edward Hopper , Georgia O’Keeffe and others.

But for Ms. Harrison, who became the museum’s eighth director early this year , emphasizing art isn’t just a way to publicize the museum’s rich collections. “We want the museum to now be an active hub, an ecosystem where art begins and drives conversations about big ideas and social issues,” she said. This approach, she added, is aimed at making the museum more welcoming to a broad range of visitors.