Jánico (Caribbean Spanish pronunciation: [ˈhaniko]) is a small mountain town and municipality (municipio) of the Santiago province in the Dominican Republic.
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.
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 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.
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.