List of Philippine place names of Spanish origin

As a result of more than three centuries of Spanish dominance in the islands that are now the republic of the Philippines, an overwhelming number of places in the country have Spanish or Hispanic names. As with Filipino surnames and many other aspects of Filipino culture, place names in the Philippines have received a great deal of Spanish influence, with many places in the former Spanish colony having been named after those in Spain and Latin America. The name Philippines itself originated from its old official name Filipinas in honor of King Philip II of Spain. Spanish language has also become one of the country's official languages from the late 16th century until 1986 when it was designated as a voluntary language and it remains so to this day.

Provinces
  • Abra (Spanish for "opening." Originally the province was called El Abra de Vigan -- "The Opening of Vigan")[1]
  • Aurora (Spanish given name. The province was named in honor of Aurora Quezon, wife of Philippine president Manuel Quezon.)
  • Camarines Norte and Camarines Sur (Camarines is the plural form of the Spanish word camarín which means "boat sheds". Norte pertains to the former province's geographical location being on the north, and Sur pertains to the latter province's geographical location being on the south.)[2]
  • Compostela Valley (named after its main topographic feature, the valley on which the town of Compostela is located. The town's name in turn may have come from the city of Santiago de Compostela in Spain.)[3]
  • Isabela (Spanish given name. The province was named after Isabella II, the reigning queen of Spain at the time of the province's creation in 1856.)
  • La Union (Spanish for "the union," referring to the merging of towns from southern Ilocos Sur and northern Pangasinan that resulted in the creation of the province in 1854.)[4]
  • Laguna (Spanish for "lake," or "lagoon," referring to the large body of freshwater (Laguna de Bay, Spanish for "Lake of Bay") that was named after the province's first capital, the town of Bay.)[5]
  • Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental (Negros is Spanish for "blacks," referring to the dark-skinned Negritos that inhabited the island. Occidental refers to the former province's geographic location on the island's western half, and Oriental refers to the latter province's geographic location on the island's eastern half. The political division of the island was by a royal decree issued by the King of Spain and executed by the Governor General on January 1, 1890.[6])
  • Nueva Ecija (Spanish for "new Écija", after a town in province of Sevilla, whose topography Don Fausto Cruzat y Góngora associated to.)[7]
  • Nueva Vizcaya (Spanish for "new Biscay", after the province in the Basque Country of Spain.)
  • Quezon (Spanish surname. The province, formerly known as Tayabas, was renamed in 1949 in honor of Philippine president Manuel Quezon.)
  • Quirino (Spanish surname. The province was named after Philippine president Elpidio Quirino.)
  • Rizal (Spanish surname. The province was named after Philippine national hero José Rizal.)

Cities

Municipalities

A

B

C

D

E

F
  • Famy, Laguna (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Filipino president Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy.)
  • Ferrol, Romblon (named after the city of Ferrol in Galicia, Spain.)
  • Flora, Apayao (Spanish given name. The municipality was named after the wife of Filipino congressman Alfredo Lam-en.)
  • Floridablanca, Pampanga ("white flower")

G

 
  Spanish Parish Priest of Guindulman and Friar Jose Garcia de la Virgen de los Remedios, O.A.R., Filipino Parish Priest of Loon.)

H
  • Hermosa, Bataan ("beautiful"/a contraction of its original name Llana Hermosa which means "beautiful plains.")
  • Hernani, Eastern Samar (named after the Spanish town of Hernani in Basque Country, Spain.)

I

J
  • Jaen, Nueva Ecija (named after the Spanish city of Jaén in Andalusia, Spain.)
  • Javier, Leyte (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Filipino teacher and pioneer Daniel Falcon Javier.)
  • Jimenez, Misamis Occidental (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Spanish missionary Francisco Jimenez de Fermin.)
  • Jose Abad Santos, Davao del Sur (Spanish name. The municipality was named after Filipino politician José Abad Santos.)
  • Jose Dalman, Zamboanga del Norte (Spanish name. The municipality was named after Filipino patriot Jose Dalman.)
  • Josefina, Zamboanga del Sur (Spanish given name. The municipality was named after Josefina Edralin, mother of Filipino president Ferdinand Marcos.)
  • Jovellar, Albay (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Spanish Governor-General Joaquín Jovellar.)
  • Julita, Leyte (Spanish given name. The municipality was named after Filipino pioneer Julita Caladcad.)

L

M

N
  • Nabas, Aklan (derived from Spanish surname Navas. The municipality was named after Spanish Governor General Cárlos María de la Torre y Nava Cerrada.)
  • Natividad, Pangasinan (derived from Natividad de Nuestro Señor Jesucristo, Spanish for "The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ.")
  • Naval, Biliran (derived from "La Naval de Manila.")
  • New Corella, Davao del Norte (named after the Spanish town of Corella in Navarre, Spain.)
  • New Lucena, Iloilo (named after the Spanish town of Lucena in Andalusia, Spain.)
  • Norala, South Cotabato (derived from Norte de Alah, Spanish for "North Alah (Valley).")
  • Norzagaray, Bulacan (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Spanish Governor-General Fernándo Norzagaray y Escudero.)
  • Nueva Era, Ilocos Norte ("New Era")
  • Nueva Valencia, Guimaras ("New Valencia"; named after the Spanish city of Valencia.)
  • Numancia, Aklan (named after the Spanish town of Numantia in Castile-La Mancha, Spain.)

O
  • Obando, Bulacan (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Spanish Governor-General Francisco José de Ovando.)
  • Ocampo, Camarines Sur (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Filipino politician Julian Ocampo.)

P

Q

R

S

T

U
  • Urbiztondo, Pangasinan (Spanish surname. The municipality was named after Spanish Governor-General Antonio de Urbistondo y Eguía.)

V

Z

Region

Barrios and districts

This is not an exhaustive list.

Islands

This is not an exhaustive list.

Mountains and hills

This is not an exhaustive list.

Streets and roads

This is not an exhaustive list.

Rivers

This is not an exhaustive list.

Bays and inlets

Lakes

See also

References
  1. Provincial Profile of Abra
  2. Scott, William Henry (1994). Barangay: Sixteenth-Century Philippine Culture and Society. Ateneo de Manila University Press. p. 179. ISBN 9715501354.
  3. Comval, one untouched by the Spanish
  4. Provincial Profile of La Union
  5. Provincial Profile of Laguna
  6. Scott, William Henry (1994). Barangay: Sixteenth-Century Philippine Culture and Society. Ateneo de Manila University Press. p. 253. ISBN 9715501354.
  7. Abigan, Edmund R. (1998). The Philippine Atlas. Philippine Guides. p. 61.
  8. Brief History Archived 2012-02-17 at the Wayback Machine City Government of Cadiz. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  9. Escalante City History Negros Occidental Provincial Government. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  10. History LasPinas.com. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  11. About Lucena Archived 2012-05-02 at the Wayback Machine Quezon Provincial Government. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  12. All About Science City of Muñoz City Government of Muñoz. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  13. History of Puerto Princesa Puerto Princesa Resorts. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  14. Aguilar Provincial Government of Pangasinan. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  15. History Archived 2012-06-24 at the Wayback Machine AlaminosLaguna.info. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  16. History Archived 2012-02-04 at the Wayback Machine Municipal Government of Alburquerque. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  17. Alcala Provincial Government of Pangasinan. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  18. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/12276/pg12276.html
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