The name “Iloilo City” was derived from “irong-irong”, a reference to the native word “irong” which means “nose”. The name took after the nose-like configuration of the main settlement area during the pre-Spanish period as so shaped by the Iloilo River. Chinese traders who frequent the area and who mispronounce the “r” sounds with “l” sounds, soon popularized the term “ilong-ilong” which later evolved into the current name Iloilo Arial 9.5 The name is said to have also evolved from a local fish of the same name which was indigenous to the place and which was a staple in the early inhabitants’ daily meals
