Bulacan 6.51

Bulakan is a first class urban municipality in the Province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the, it has a population of people. It is north of Manila.Bulakan, which is one of the oldest towns in the Philippines, became the encomienda or capital of the Provincia de la Pampanga, and later became the first capital of the Province of Bulacan before it was moved to Malolos shortly after the American occupation.With regards to whether to use the letters "c" or "k" to refer to the municipality of Bulakan, the New Provincial Administrative Code of Bulacan (Ordinance no. C-004) of 2007 states on Chapter 2, Section 15 that the word "Bulakan" stands for the municipality and first capital of the province while "Bulacan" refers to the province itself.HistoryThe name "Bulakan" is derived from the Tagalog word "bulak", which means "cotton". The town was named Bulacan due to the abundance of cotton plants growing in the region.The Augustinians founded Bulakan as one of the visitas of Convento de Tondo in 1575 under its minister Fray Alonzo Alvarado, OSA. In 1578 it became a town Parish and Convent dedicated it under the patronage of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción with Caluya (now Balagtas, became town in 1599) and Guiguinto (became town in 1641) as its visitas. According to local records, Father Agustin del Alburqueque, OSA is the first Prior of the Town.In a census of June 1591, the Province of Bulacan had 1,200 tributes or 4,800 persons, one Augustinian convent, one Gobernadorcillo and one alcalde mayor (present day governor) who had jurisdiction over the towns of Bulakan (then capital) Malolos, Calumpit, Guiguinto, Caluya and Meycauayan.