Palanyag was its original name, which means “my beloved”, among other definitions for as far as its residents are concerned, this best describes their affection for their hometown. Another version came from the combination of the terms “palayan” and “palalayag”, the former meaning rice fields of which the city once abounded in and the latter pertaining to the sailing and fishing occupation of many of its residents. This was also a sign of cooperation and goodwill between the two major working sectors of the town, the farmers and the fishermen. It was however a drunken guest, during a certain affair which decided on the final name, who said “Mabuhay and Palanyag at ang mga taga-Palanyag! (Long live Palanyag and the People of Palanyag!)” So the name stuck from that day on.
Another version, according to tradition, was when a Spanish soldier told the driver of a caruaje or horse-drawn carriage, to “Para aqui, para aqui (Stop here, stop here!)” The driver, uncomprehending, kept on prodding his horse to go on while the soldier angrily repeated his instruction: “Para aqui, para aqui!” Onlookers just laughed as the Spaniards empathetically said “para aniya aqui, para aniya aqui (he said ‘stop here’… he said ‘stop here).” For days the incident was repeated around and the term “para aniya aqui” stuck.
There is another story that says of an imposing balete tree at the mouth of Parañaque. It looked like a boat sailing slowly and majestically, earning the Tagalog term Palanyag, a corruption of the term “palayag” which means “point of navigation”. Further adulteration of the word later resulted in the word “palayaque”.
A historian believes the town’s name may have come from the term “palanas” which means a “broad flat plain,” the geographic description of Parañaque.
Other origins of the name Parañaque are “palanac” (with no special meaning), “palanyag” or contest for popularity, and “paranac”, a native term for the shell product that used to be the livelihood of the natives of the town at one time.
Whatever maybe is the real origin of the name Parañaque, the various terms strongly suggest the town’s stories and mosaic past.
Geography
Parañaque lies some 9.7 km. south of the Luneta Grandstand. It is bounded by Pasay City on the north, Muntinlupa on the southeast, Las Piñas on the southwest, and Manila Bay on the west. It occupies a total land area of 46,626 sq. kilometers.
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