# List of Metro Manila placename etymologies

This is a list of sources of the place names in the Philippine capital region of Metro Manila.

## Place names

| Place Name | Location | Root |
| Alabang | Muntinlupa | Contraction of "Alambangbang" or "Alibangbang," a type of orchid tree. |
| Alicia | Quezon City | Alicia Syquía de Quirino, wife of President Elpidio Quirino. Killed with her children by the Japanese during World War II before her husband's rule. |
| Arkong Bato | Valenzuela | Filipino for "stone arch", referring to the structure built by the American colonial Insular Government. It demarcated the border of the then-towns of Polo and Malabon, and their respective provinces of Rizal and Bulacan. |
| Baclaran | Parañaque | Spanish rendering of the old Tagalog name bakladan/baklaran which means a place of rattan fence (baklád) used as fish corral. |
| Bagong Ilog | Pasig | Filipino for "new river." |
| Bagong Lipunan ng Crame | Quezon City | Filipino phrase which means "New Society of Crame." It is named after Camp Crame, which was named after Rafael Crame. |
| Bagong Pagasa | Quezon City | Filipino for "new hope." |
| Bagumbayan | Quezon City, Navotas and Taguig | Filipino for "new town." |
| Balong Bato | San Juan | Balóng bató, the Filipino word for "stone well." |
| Bambang | Pasig and Taguig | Filipino word for "riverbank”, synonymous with “pampáng”. |
| Barangka, Barangka Drive, Barangka Ibaba, Barangka Ilaya and Barangka Itaas | Marikina and Mandaluyong | Tagalisation of old Spanish "Barranca," meaning canyon or river gorge. Ibabà is Filipino for "lower”, Ilaya means "inland" or "interior," and Itaás means "upper." |
| Baseco | Manila Port Area | Acronym for "Bataan Shipping and Engineering Company," owner of the dockyard where the settlement was founded. |
| Batis | San Juan | Filipino term for "rivulet" or "creek" which dominated the area. |
| Bayanihan | Quezon City | Filipino word for "community brotherhood." |
| BF Homes Caloocan, BF Homes Parañaque and BF International Village | Caloocan, Parañaque and Las Piñas | Banco Filipino, the gated communities' developer |
| Bicutan (Central Bicutan, Lower Bicutan, Upper Bicutan and Western Bicutan) | Taguig | Old Tagalog word, meaning "to dig", referring to the digging for treasures in the area in its early history. |
| Bignay | Valenzuela | Named for the bignay tree. |
| Binondo | Manila | Spanish rendering of the old Tagalog name binundok, meaning mountainous or hilly. |
| Buli | Muntinlupa | Named for the buri palm. |
| Bungad | Quezon City | Filipino word for "front." |
| Calumpang | Marikina | Spanish rendering of "kalumpang", a type of tropical chestnuts. |
| Camp Aguinaldo | Quezon City | Emilio Aguinaldo, first president of the Philippines |
| Camp Crame and West Crame | Quezon City and San Juan | Rafael Crame, sixth chief of the Philippine Constabulary and the first Filipino to hold the position. |
| Caniogan | Pasig | Filipino word for "a place where coconut grows." |
| Carmona | Makati | Isidro Carmona, Filipino soldier during the Philippine Revolution and Philippine–American War. |
| Cembo and South Cembo | Taguig | Acronym for "Central Enlisted Men's Barrio." |
| Comembo | Taguig | Acronym for "Combat Enlisted Men's Barrio." |
| Cubao | Quezon City | Spanish rendering of kubaw, a local species of banana. |
| Cupang | Muntinlupa | Named for the cupang tree. |
| Daang Bakal | Mandaluyong | Filipino word for "railroad," in reference to the village's location along a former Manila tranvía (tram) line and as the former location of one of the four tranvía stations in the former San Felipe Neri municipality. |
| Dalandanan | Valenzuela | Named for the local orange trees (dalandan) that stood in the area. |
| Damayan Lagi | Quezon City | Filipino phrase, meaning "perpetual help." |
| Dasmariñas Village | Makati | Gómez Pérez Dasmariñas, Spanish governor-general. |
| San Francisco del Monte (SFDM) / Del Monte | Quezon City | Named after St. Francis. Del Monte (from the mountain) was affixed to the name distinguish it from San Francisco de Manila, a Franciscan church in Intramuros, Manila. |
| Diliman | Quezon City | From dilim, a type of fern. |
| Divisoria | Manila Tondo and Binondo | Spanish for "dividing line" (línea divisoria) |
| Don Bosco | Parañaque | Saint John Bosco. |
| Don Galo | Parañaque | Galo of Parañaque, a local hero of the 1574 Battle of Manila. |
| Don Manuel | Quezon City | Manuel L. Quezon, second president of the Philippines. |
| Doña Aurora | Quezon City | Aurora Quezon, first lady of the Philippines. |
| Doña Imelda | Quezon City | Imelda Marcos, first lady of the Philippines. |
| Doña Josefa | Quezon City | Josefa Edralin Marcos, mother of Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos. |
| E. Rodriguez | Quezon City | Eulogio Rodriguez, Filipino senator. |
| Ermita | Manila | Spanish for "hermitage" or solitary place. |
| Ermitaño | San Juan | Spanish word for "hermit." |
| Escopa (I, II, III and IV) | Quezon City | Acronym for "First Company of the Philippine Army." |
| Forbes Park | Makati | William Cameron Forbes, American governor-general. |
| Fort Bonifacio | Taguig | Andrés Bonifacio, Filipino revolutionary and hero. |
| Fortune | Marikina | Fortune Tobacco Corporation, a cigarette manufacturing company based in the village. |
| Gen. T. de Leon | Valenzuela | Tiburcio de León, Filipino general and revolutionary |
| Greenhills | San Juan | Greenhills (mixed-use development) and Greenhills, Ohio, USA |
| Guadalupe Nuevo and Guadalupe Viejo | Makati | Our Lady of Guadalupe |
| Hagonoy | Taguig | Named for the hagonoy plant that was prevalent in the area. |
| Hulo | Mandaluyong | Old Tagalog word for "outer part" or "external" referring to the barrio's location from the town's poblacion. |
| Intramuros | Manila | Latin for "within the walls." |
| Isabelita | San Juan | Isabelita Barredo, matriarch of a local real estate company that owned and developed the Isabelita Heights gated village in the area. |
| Jesus dela Peña | Marikina | Jesús de la Peña ("Jesus of the Rocks"), an Order of Saint Augustine parish founded in the area during the Spanish colonial era. |
| Kaligayahan | Quezon City | Filipino word for "happiness." |
| Kalusugan | Quezon City | Filipino word for "health." |
| Kapitolyo | Pasig | Filipino word for "capitol," a corruption of the Spanish word capitolio. Named for its proximity to the former Rizal provincial capitol. |
| Karuhatan | Valenzuela | From the Tagalog word kaduhatan, meaning "where duhat (black plum) trees grow." |
| Katipunan | Quezon City | Katipunan, a Filipino revolutionary society. |
| Kaunlaran | Quezon City | Filipino word for "progress." |
| Krus na Ligas | Quezon City | Named for a local type of nut tree which took the form of a cross. |
| La Huerta | Parañaque | Spanish for "the orchard." |
| La Loma | Quezon City | Spanish for "the knoll." |
| Laging Handa | Quezon City | Filipino for "always prepared," the motto of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines after whom the village was named. |
| Little Baguio | San Juan | Baguio, Cordillera |
| Loyola Heights | Quezon City and Marikina | Saint Ignatius of Loyola |
| Mabini–J. Rizal | Mandaluyong | Apolinario Mabini, Filipino statesman and revolutionary, and José Rizal, Filipino national hero. The village was named for its location at the junction of Mabini and Rizal streets. |
| Magallanes | Makati | Ferdinand Magellan, Portuguese explorer. |
| Magsaysay | Quezon City | Ramon Magsaysay, seventh president of the Philippines. |
| Maharlika and Maharlika Village | Quezon City and Taguig | Old Tagalog word for "noble". |
| Malamig | Mandaluyong | Filipino word which means "Cold." |
| Malanday | Valenzuela and Marikina | Old Tagalog word which means "a bowl plate" or "round and flat" in reference to the shape of the territory similar to a winnower. |
| Malate | Manila | Spanish rendering of the Tagalog word maalat meaning salty. |
| Malaya | Quezon City | Filipino word which means "free." |
| Malibay | Pasay | Old Tagalog word for "a place teeming with herds of deer (libay)." |
| Malinta | Valenzuela | Filipino word for "where there are many leeches" (lintâ). |
| Marilag | Quezon City | Old Tagalog word for "beautiful." |
| Mariana | Mariana | Mariana Wilson, a community leader and one of the original residents of New Manila. |
| Marulas | Valenzuela | Old Tagalog word for "slippery", in reference to the muddy topography of the area where a stud farm once stood. |
| Masagana | Quezon City | Filipino word for "bountiful." |
| Maypajo | Caloocan | Contraction of the Tagalog phrase "may pajotan" ("where there is pajotan"), a variety of mango that grew in abundance in the area. |
| Maysan | Valenzuela | Filipino word for "corn field." |
| Milagrosa | Quezon City | Spanish and Filipino word for "miraculous." |
| N.S. Amoranto | Quezon City | Norberto Amoranto, fifth mayor of Quezon City. |
| Nagkaisang Nayon | Quezon City | Filipino phrase which means "united village." |
| Nangka | Marikina | Filipino word for "jackfruit". |
| Napindan | Taguig | Old Tagalog word which means "pierced through," referring to the creation of a water channel in the area linking Laguna de Bay and the Pasig River. |
| Novaliches | Quezon City | The district of Novaliches in Jérica, Valencian Community, Spain where governor-general Manuel Pavía y Lacy was honored as its first marquess. |
| Olympia | Makati | Olympia, a tile and brick factory that once stood in the area on the banks of the Pasig River ca. 1925. |
| Onse | San Juan | Block number 11 (onse in Filipino) |
| Paang Bundok | Quezon City | Filipino for "mountain foot" |
| Paco | Manila | Spanish rendering of the old Tagalog name for edible vegetable fern (pako). |
| Pagibig sa Nayon | Quezon City | Filipino phrase which means "love of village." |
| Paligsahan | Quezon City | Filipino word for "competition." |
| Palingon | Taguig | Filipino word for "to look back." |
| Pandacan | Manila | Spanish rendering of the old Tagalog word for the place "where the pandan plant (Pandanus gracilis) grows." |
| Paraiso | Quezon City | Spanish and Filipino word for "paradise." |
| Pariancillo Villa | Valenzuela | Spanish for small parián or market place. |
| Pasadena | San Juan | Contraction of Paso de Cadena de Amor (Coral Vine Way), in reference to the prevalence of coral vines (cadena de amor in Filipino) in the village. |
| Paso de Blas | Valenzuela | Spanish for "Blaise's pass", named in honor of the village patron, Saint Blaise. |
| Pembo | Taguig | Acronym for "Panthers Enlisted Men's Barrio." |
| Phil-Am | Quezon City | Philam Life, the gated village's developer. |
| Pio del Pilar | Makati | Pío del Pilar, Filipino general during the Philippine Revolution and Philippine–American War. |
| Pinagkaisahan | Quezon City and Makati | Filipino word for "united." |
| Pinagsama | Taguig | Filipino word for "united" or "combined" in reference to the joining of seven villages. |
| Polo | Valenzuela | Spanish rendering of the Tagalog word "pulo"" which means "island." |
| Progreso | San Juan | Spanish for "progress." |
| Pulang Lupa (Pulang Lupa Uno and Pulang Lupa Dos) | Las Piñas | Filipino for "red earth," in reference to its old industry of tisa or brick production. |
| Putatan | Muntinlupa | From putat, a local variety of flowering plants in the Lecythidaceae family that was common in the lakeside village. |
| Quiapo | Manila | Spanish rendering of the old Tagalog name kiyapo, a type of water cabbage common in the area. |
| Quirino (1, 2A, 2B, 2C and 3A) | Quezon City | Elpidio Quirino, sixth president of the Philippines. |
| Rembo (East Rembo and West Rembo) | Taguig | Acronym for "Riverside Enlisted Men's Barrio." |
| Rincon | Valenzuela | Spanish for "corner." |
| Rizal | Taguig | José Rizal, Filipino national hero. |
| Roxas | Quezon City | Manuel Roxas, fifth president of the Philippines. |
| Salapan | San Juan | from salapang, a local "bamboo spear" that was used by early settlers to catch fish in the Salapan creek. |
| Salvacion | Quezon City | Spanish for "salvation." |
| Sampaloc | Manila | Spanish rendering of the Tagalog word sampalok (tamarind). |
| Sangandaan | Caloocan | Filipino word for "crossroad." |
| Santa Mesa | Manila | Spanish for "holy table," a contraction of "Hermandad de Santa Mesa de la Misericordia" (Brotherhood of the Holy Table of Mercy). |
| Socorro | Quezon City | Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro (Our Lady of Perpetual Help), the village patron. |
| Sucat | Muntinlupa | Spanish rendering of the Tagalog word for "measurement" (sukat). |
| Tagumpay | Quezon City | Filipino word for "victory." |
| Tambo | Parañaque | Filipino word for tiger grass. |
| Tandang Sora | Quezon City | Melchora Aquino, Filipina independence activist. |
| Tibagan | San Juan | Filipino for "a place where they crush boulders," in reference to a limestone quarry that operated in the area. |
| Tipas (Calzada-Tipas, Ibayo-Tipas and Ligid-Tipas) | Taguig | Old Tagalog word for "detour", referring to a meander in the river. Calzada is Spanish for "roadway," Ibayo is Old Tagalog for "opposite side," and Ligid is Old Tagalog for "surrounding." |
| Tondo | Manila | Spanish rendering of the old Tagalog name tundok, a type of river mangrove that was prevalent in the area. |
| Tuktukan | Taguig | Old Tagalog word for "a place where people wash clothes." |
| Tunasan | Muntinlupa | Named for tunas, a type of water lily. |
| Ugong and Ugong Norte | Pasig, Valenzuela and Quezon City | Filipino word for "roaring sound" of a river, referring to the Marikina River in Ugong, Pasig and Tullahan River in Ugong, Valenzuela. |
| Unang Sigaw | Quezon City | Filipino for "first cry" in reference to the village's role in the Cry of Pugad Lawin. |
| Urdaneta Village | Makati | Andrés de Urdaneta, Spanish circumnavigator. |
| Ususan | Taguig | Old Tagalog word for "a place where the river drains or slides." |
| Veinte Reales | Valenzuela | Spanish for "twenty reals" referring to the cost of the land purchased during the Spanish colonial era. |
| Wack-Wack | Mandaluyong | English rendering of the uwak, a type of local large-billed crow. |
| Wawa | Taguig | Old Tagalog word for "upstream." |