Geography

Aklan occupies the northwestern portion of Panay Island and includes the valley adjoining Aklan River and the northern coastal lowlands. It is flanked on the north by the Sibuyan Sea, on the south by Capiz and on the west by the highlands of Panay. Its broad lowland areas extend far inland into the foothills of the extremely rugged western and southern highlands. The province has a total land area of 181,789 hectares and is composed of 17 municipalities with Kalibo as its capital town. It has 327 barangays and one congressional district. Aklan is a 34d class province.

Aklan has two pronounced seasons: dry from December to May and wet the rest of the year.

Origin

The part of Panay now constituting the provinces of Aklan and Capiz is said to have been occupied by Datu Bancaya, one of the seven Bornean datus who bought the island from the Negritos in 1213. A succession of rulers reigned for the next three centuries, the most famous being Datu Kalantiaw who promulgated the Code of Kalantiaw in 1433. In 1570, Spanish forces under Martin de Goite conquered Panay. Aklan became an independent administrative and political unit in 1656 and 1716 was organized into a politico-military province. It was officially declared a province under Republic Act No. 1414 on April 25, 1956.

People

The inhabitants are Panay Visayans who speak a dialect call Aklanon. Population of Aklan in 1980 was 325,000 and has grown to 380,028 in 1990.

Economy

The land is used for the cultivation of rice and corn as food crops and coconut and fruits as cash crops. Mineral production is limited to sand, gravel, silica and pottery. The province's economic activities include wholesale andretail, manufacturing, community, social and personal services, deep-sea fishing, fishpond, rattan furniture making and home industries such as abaca slippers, fishnets and sinamay making.