Aborlan

Aborlan, officially the Municipality of Aborlan (Tagalog: Bayan ng Aborlan), is a municipality in the province of Palawan , Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 38,736 people.^[6]

Aborlan
Municipality
Municipality of Aborlan
Palm plantation in Sagpangan, in Aborlan municipality
Flag
Map of Palawan with Aborlan highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Aborlan Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 9°26′19″N 118°32′53″E
Country	Philippines
Region	Mimaropa
Province	Palawan
District	3rd district
Founded	June 28, 1949
Barangays	19 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Jaime Ortega
• Vice Mayor	Marvin C. Madeja
• Representative	Edward Solon Hagedorn
• Municipal Council	Members Marissa U. Zumarraga Alex Pedro P. Peneyra David C. Mosteiro Jr. Mamerto N. Chavez Marvin C. Madeja Ibandio M. Caralipio Joel P. Lumis Jr. Roger B. Jagmis
• Electorate	28,433 voters (2025)
Area [2]
• Total	807.33 km2 (311.71 sq mi)
Elevation [3]	210 m (690 ft)
Highest elevation	64 m (210 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2024 census)[4]
• Total	39,972
• Density	50/km2 (130/sq mi)
• Households	9,715
Economy
• Income class	1st municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	15.44 % (2021)[5]
• Revenue	₱ 446.1 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 1,119 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 260.1 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 228.9 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Palawan Electric Cooperative (PALECO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	5302
PSGC	1705301000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)48
Native languages	Aborlan Tagbanwa Palawano Tagalog

Aborlan is the province's only town with an agricultural college, now called Western Philippines University. It was founded in 1910.^[7]

Etymology

Many stories tell about how the town got its present name:^[8]

• Abelnan, a legendary tree of the gods; and
• The English phrase "A Boar Land" that an American man shouted as he noticed the place with wild boars, thus making the place called Aboarland.

History

Formerly a municipal district, Aborlan became a municipality on June 28, 1949 by virtue of Executive Order No. 232.^[7][9] In 1951, the municipality lost the barrios of Berong and Alfonso XII when those were transferred to the newly created town of Quezon.^[10]

Geography

It lies in a vast plain between the Sulu Sea and the mountains, 68 kilometres (42 mi) south of Puerto Princesa City.

Barangays

Aborlan is politically subdivided into 19 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Apo-Aporawan
• Apoc-apoc
• Aporawan
• Barake
• Cabigaan
• Gogognan
• Iraan
• Isaub
• Jose Rizal
• Mabini
• Magbabadil
• Plaridel
• Ramon Magsaysay
• Sagpangan
• San Juan
• Tagpait
• Tigman
• Poblacion
• Culandanum

Climate

Climate data for Aborlan, Palawan
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	29 (84)	30 (86)	31 (88)	31 (88)	30 (86)	30 (86)	29 (84)	29 (84)	30 (86)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	30 (85)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	23 (73)	23 (73)	24 (75)	25 (77)	26 (79)	26 (79)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	24 (75)	25 (76)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	73 (2.9)	68 (2.7)	96 (3.8)	104 (4.1)	193 (7.6)	246 (9.7)	225 (8.9)	199 (7.8)	213 (8.4)	250 (9.8)	226 (8.9)	143 (5.6)	2,036 (80.2)
Average rainy days	15.4	13.7	17.8	19.4	27.0	28.5	29.1	27.8	28.3	28.5	25.6	21.8	282.9
Source: Meteoblue[11]

Demographics

Population census of Aborlan

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1918 2,734 —     1939 5,780 +3.63% 1948 6,351 +1.05% 1960 17,530 +8.83% 1970 8,880 −6.57% 1975 10,452 +3.32% 1980 11,799 +2.45% 1990 18,751 +4.74%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1995 21,650 +2.73% 2000 25,540 +3.61% 2007 27,953 +1.25% 2010 32,209 +5.29% 2015 35,091 +1.65% 2020 38,736 +2.10% 2024 39,972 +0.76%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[12][13][14][15][16]

In the 2020 census, the population of Aborlan was 38,736 people,^[17] with a density of 48 inhabitants per square kilometre or 120 inhabitants per square mile.

Economy

Poverty incidence of Aborlan

10 20 30 40 50 60 2000 54.93 2003 53.77 2006 37.30 2009 23.37 2012 22.35 2015 21.56 2018 13.33 2021 15.44 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]

Culture

The town celebrates the Rakudan Festival (Palawano for 'gathering in an agreed place') annually every June. It features the lechon or roast pig which references the theory of the town's name origin coming from the phrase "a boar land".^[26]