Palawan is an island province of MiMaRoPa Region or Region 4-B, Philippines.
Profile of Palawan Province (Geography)
Location –> The province of Palawan is located southwest of Mindoro island. It belongs to Region 4B or the so-called MiMaRoPa Region, Philippines. (See map below.)
Nearest Province –> Occidental Mindoro
Capital –> Puerto Princesa City
Area –> 14,649.73 km2 (5,656.29 sq mi) – biggest in the Philippines
Population –> 849,469 (2015 census)
Terrain –> Mountainous with narrow coastal plains
Industries –> Agriculture, Mining, Tourism
Major Products –> Rice, Corn, Nickel and other minerals
People/Language –> Tagalog, Tagbanwa, Cuyonon, Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a
City –> Puerto Princesa
Municipalities (Towns) –> (23) Aborlan, Agutaya, Araceli, Balabac, Bataraza, Brooke’s Point, Busuanga, Cagayancillo, Coron, Culion, Cuyo, Dumaran, El Nido, Kalayaan, Linapacan, Magsaysay, Narra, Quezon, Rizal, Roxas, San Vicente, Sofronio Española, Taytay
Provincial Officials in Palawan
Governor –> Jose Ch. Alvarez
Vice Governor –> Victorino Dennis M. Socrates
Representative (1st District) –> Franz Josef George E. Alvarez
Representative (2nd District) –> Cyrille “Beng” Abueg
Predecessor –> Frederick F. Abueg
Representative (3rd District) –> Gil Acosta Jr.
Predecessor –> Gil P. Acosta Sr.
Provincial Board Members (Sangguniang Panlalawigan or SP)
Roseller S. Pineda – 1st District
Winston G. Arzaga
Leoncio N. Ola
David Francis F. Ponce De Leon
Cherry Pie B. Acosta
Sharon Q. Abiog-Onda – 2nd District
Eduardo Modesto V. Rodriguez
Marivic H. Roxas
Sunny G. Batul
Albert G. Rama
Palawan History
The island of Palawan was believed to have been inhabited as early as 50,000 years ago. This was based on the study of Dr. Robert B. Fox who made a research on the so-called Tabon Man and the artifacts found in Tabon Cave of Quezon Municipality.
Successive migration of people from other parts of Asia particularly the Malays, the Chinese and Indians occurred 5,000 years ago. A more recent migration happened around the 12th to 13th centuries by Malay people especially from the island of Borneo. They brought with them their culture such as writing system and the Islam and Hindu Religions. The southernmost part of Palawan was in fact ruled by the Sultan of Brunei.
During the Spanish Period, Palawan consists of two provinces and later three namely: Castilla, Paragua, and Asturias. When the Americans came, the province was unified with its current name and capital.
Before the creation of Region 4B on 17 May 2002, Palawan was part of the old Southern Tagalog Region or Region 4.
On April 5, 2019, President Rodrigo Duterte signed Republic Act No. 11259, the law that would divide Palawan into three provinces to be named Palawan del Norte, Palawan Oriental and Palawan del Sur, which shall be the mother province. On March 13, 2021, a plebiscite was held but majority voted no to the proposed division.
Go here to see all the famous people from Palawan Province.
Go here to see all the candidates and results of the 2019 election in Palawan Province.
Read the history of Palawan in Tagalog here.
Economy of Palawan
Main economic activities in Palawan are farming, fishing, mining and tourism. Rice, fish, and nickel are the principal products. Due to the numerous natural and man-made attractions, the province has become one of the most visited in the country.
RELATED: Profile of Quezon Province
See also: List of Philippine Provinces and Capital by Region