Places named after native trees

Many places in the Philippines have been named after native trees. First in the list of course is my hometown, Mabalacat City, which was named after the balacat tree, Zizyphus talanai. Mabalacat means full of balacat. These trees were abundant in our hometown before. Balacat is endemic to the Philippines, meaning it can only be found here.

Some of our Barangays in Mabalacat were also named after natives trees. Dau, our biggest barangay and the city’s commercial district, was named after the dao tree (Dracontomelon dao). During the term of Barangay Captain Louie Cunanan, there was a balacat tree and a dao tree planted in front of the Dau barangay hall.

Dapdap, the bar angay where Madapdap Resettlement is located, was named after the native tree dapdap (Erythrina variegate). This tree has medicinal properties. In the Clark area, there’s barangay Calumpang, named after the tree kalumpang, Sterculia foetida, which is also called wild almond. It has medicinal properties too.

We have a barangay called Camachiles. Unfortunately this tree is not native to us. Ccamachiles, Pithecellobium dulce, is native to the Pacific Coast and adjacent highlands of Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. It was introduced to the Philippines via the Manila galleons.

In Guagua there is Betis, named after the betis tree (Madhuca betis). When former Pampanga Governor Ed Panlilio was still the parish priest of Betis, I gave a lecture there on solid waste management. I saw a small betis tree planted in front of the church. It was donated by Randy David, a native of Betis.

The town of Apalit got its name from apalit, the local name for narra (Pterocarpus indicus). Naga City in Cebu also got its name from the narra tree which was abundant in the place before. The first settlers named the place as “narra” and named it in later years to what it is now – Naga. Interestingly, Naga City in Bicol was also named after the narra tree. The conquistador Juan de Salcedo named it Naga because of the abundance of narra trees (naga in Bikol).

Cabuyao in Laguna or Cabuyao in Nueva Ecija, were probably named after the kabuyaw tree (Citrus hystrix), a citrus fruit native to tropical Southeast Asia and southern China. Talisay town in Batangas was named after the talisay tree (Terminalia catappa) known here in Pampanga as almendras.

Antipolo, the city famous for Hinulugang Taktak, was named after the antipolo or tipolo tree. Its scientific name is Artocarpus blanco , and is endemic to the Philippines. It is very similar to the ‘kamansi’ tree. Inside Mimoza in Clark , I saw an Antipolo tree in the area near the golf clubhouse.

The town of Calumpit in Bulacan, was named after the kalumpit tree (Terminalia microcarpa). The fruits are edible, eaten raw or made into preserves. Katmon in Rizal was named after the catmon tree (Dillenia philippinensis). It is endemic to the Philippines and can be used for urban greening. Its fruit is known as elephant apple.