Jánico

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title: "Jánico" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["municipalities-of-the-dominican-republic", "populated-places-in-santiago-province-(dominican-republic)"] topic_path: "general/municipalities-of-the-dominican-republic" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jánico" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
name	Jánico
native_name	Municipio de Janico
settlement_type	Town and municipality
image_skyline	Janico Dominican Republic countryside town 2.jpg
image_caption	Janico, Dominican Republic town church.
pushpin_map	Dominican Republic
pushpin_relief	1
pushpin_map_caption	Jánico in the Dominican Republic
image_seal	Escudo_del_Municipio_Jánico.gif
coordinates
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name
subdivision_type1	Province
subdivision_name1	Santiago
established_title	Settled
established_date	16 March 1494
established_title2	Incorporated
established_date2	29 March 1881
government_footnotes
leader_party	Dominican Liberation’s Party
leader_title	Mayor
leader_name	Hilario Fernández
area_total_km2	235.03
area_footnotes
elevation_m	370
elevation_footnotes
population_total	16,993
population_as_of	2010
population_footnotes
population_urban	1,730
population_rural	15,263
total_type	Total
population_density_km2	auto
blank_name	Municipal Districts
blank_info
2
::

Jánico (Caribbean ) is a small mountain town and municipality (municipio) of the Santiago province in the Dominican Republic. A part of the Central Mountain Range, it sits east of San Jose de las Matas; west of Sabana Iglesia; and southwest of Santiago de los Caballeros. The municipality is spread over two municipal districts (distritos municipal): Juncalito and El Caimito Jánico acquired the status of municipality of the province of Santiago on March 29, 1881.

The town sits at a relatively high elevation, as part of the Central Mountain Range, (an average elevation of 370 meters), which gives the municipality a pleasant climate. Along with two municipal districts, Janico contains many rural districts (secciones): Cagüeyes, Cebu, Dicayagua Abajo, Jagua Abajo, Loma del Corral, Mesetas, Franco Bido, Janey, Rincon Largo, Yaque Abajo, Pinalito, Los Pilones, and La Guama.

Etymology and nicknames

The name of the municipality Janico is derived from the Santo Tomas de Janico Fortess, built by Christopher Columbus in 1494.

History

Jánico was first settled when Italian explorer and navigator Christopher Columbus established a stockade there in March 1494, with intention of protecting his gold mining ambitions. The prospectivity of gold was established earlier in the year by an expedition led by Alonso de Ojeda

In the same year of 1494, Columbus ordered the construction of the ephemeral Santo Tomás de Jánico Fortress, the first built inland on the island, and the second in all of America. The remains of this fortress still lie in Janico.

Due to its location in the Central Mountain Range, and its presence in the region known as the Sierra (; ) Janico received a sizeable amount of white and mulatto refugees from both Saint-Domingue and the Cibao Valley, the former during the slave revolts in 1805. By then, the (then town) was peopled mostly by ethnic Canarians and French who established a markedly endogamous society in order to preserve their whiteness, only few owned slaves.

The (then town) of Janico acquired the status of municipality on the 29th of March 1881, after 387 years. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Janico_Dominican_Republic_people.jpg" caption="People of Janico, Dominican Republic."] ::

Geography

Jánico is part of a region known as the Sierra (; ), which is a part of the Central Mountain Range, in the Cibao region. The municipality is located east of San Jose de las Matas; west of Sabana Iglesia; and southwest of Santiago de los Caballeros.

Demographics

In the 1950 census it was the town with the second highest percentage of white people in the country, with 81.1 percent.

According to a 2016 genealogical DNA testing by the Genographic Project, the town still had among the highest percentages of both European and pre-Columbian heritages in the island, at 76% and 10%, respectively, while the African input was numbered at only 14%.

The cause of these demographics lies in its history. The town was peopled in the 18th century mostly by ethnic Canarians and French, who established a markedly endogamous society in order to preserve their whiteness; only a very few were slaveholders.

Economy

The main source of the municipality's economy is agriculture, with coffee cultivation as a reference, which makes it one of the most important coffee-growing areas in the country. Remittances also constitute an important element in the economy of this municipality. Janico Dominican Republic streets.jpg Janico Dominican Republic town.jpg Janico_Dominican_Republic_countryside_town_2.jpg Juncalito_Janico_2.jpg Janico_Dominican_Republic_church.jpg

Its location in the Central Mountain Range gives it landscape attributes with great potential for mountain tourism. Among its attractions are the Bao reservoir and a botanical garden with an area of 700 hectares of land. On its border with the municipality of Sabana Iglesia is the Taveras hydroelectric complex, located on the Yaque del Norte and Bao rivers. It is formed by the Taveras, Bao dams and the López Angostura reservoir. This endowment contributes 185 GWH to the national electrical system and is used to irrigate approximately 9,100 hectares of land.

For comparison with other municipalities and municipal districts see the list of municipalities and municipal districts of the Dominican Republic.

References

Pérez, Narciso. (16 August 2016). "PLD dominará seis de los 10 municipios que tiene Santiago". Diario Libre.
link. (April 17, 2009)
"Santo Tomás de Jánico". Google Maps.
(2012). "Resumen resultados generales Censo 2010". Oficina Nacional de Estadística.
Oficina Nacional de Estadistica, Departamento de Cartografia, Division de Limites y Linderos. "Listado de Codigos de Provincias, Municipio y Distritos Municipales, Actualizada a Junio 20 del 2006".
(1973). "The Columbus Dynasty in the Caribbean, 1492-1526". University of New Mexico Press.
(28 August 2010). "Población, endogamia y consanguinidad. Genealogía en la Sierra de San José de Las Matas.". Instituto Dominicano de Genealogía.
(2007). "Expansión fundacional y crecimiento en el norte dominicano (1680-1795): El Cibao y la Bahía de Samaná". Archivo General de la Nación; Academia Dominicana de la Historia.
(5 July 2016). "Dominicano promedio tiene 49% ADN africano, 39% europeo, y 4% precolombino".

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