It included the following barangays: Malay (poblacion, seat of local government), Dumlog, Cabulihan, Balusbos, Nabaoy, Cubay Norte, Cubay Sur, Cogon, Argao, Sambiray, Caticlan, Manoc-Manoc, Balabag, Yapak, Motag, Napaan, and Naasog.

[5] On April 25, 1956, Malay became part of the newly created province of Aklan, along with several other towns of Capiz.

[6] It was hit severely by typhoon Seniang on December 9–10, 2006, with much destruction and damage of homes and infrastructure.

There are 3 barangays (Balabag, Manoc-Manoc, and Yapak) of which situated within Boracay Island, while the rest are in mainland Malay.

[22] The tourism industry of Boracay became the catalyst of its economic growth that brought many investors to come and helped transform the municipality into a cosmopolitan area.

The runway was extended to 1,800 meters (5,900 ft) in 2016, allowing bigger aircraft like the Airbus A320 to land at the airport.