Janików is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

in the administrative district of

Gmina Ożarów __NOTOC__ Gmina Ożarów is an urban-rural gmina (administrative district) in Opatów County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, in south-central Poland. Its seat is the town of Ożarów, which lies approximately north-east of Opatów and east of the ...

, within Opatów County,

Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship The Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, also known as the Świętokrzyskie Province, and the Holy Cross Voivodeship ( pl, województwo świętokrzyskie ) is a voivodeship (province) of Poland situated in southeastern part of the country, in the histo ...

, in south-central Poland. It lies approximately south-east of

Ożarów Ożarów () is a town in Poland, in the province of Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, in Opatów county (Powiat of Opatów), historic Lesser Poland, with 10,399 inhabitants as of December 31, 2021. Ożarów received its town charter in 1569, during t ...

, east of Opatów, and east of the regional capital

Kielce Kielce (, yi, קעלץ, Keltz) is a city in southern Poland, and the capital of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. In 2021, it had 192,468 inhabitants. The city is in the middle of the Świętokrzyskie Mountains (Holy Cross Mountains), on the bank ...

. The village has a population of 200, and used to be a town from 1559 to 1827, and in the past, Janikow was a local center of

stonemasonry Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone as the primary material. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. Many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters, temples, mo ...

. The village lies in the valley of the Czyzowka river, along regional road nr. 755, which goes from

Zawichost Zawichost is a small town (ca. 1,800 inhabitants ) in Sandomierz County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, Poland. It is located by the Vistula River in Lesser Poland, near Sandomierz. It is first mentioned in historical documents from around 1148. I ...

Ostrowiec Swietokrzyski Ostrowiec may refer to several places: *Ostrowiec, Grodno Region, a town in Western Belarus **Ostrowiec District, administrative region in Western Belarus *Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, a town and county seat in south-central Poland **Ostrowiec Coun ...

. In northern districts of Janikow rich deposits of

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

can be found. The history of Janikow dates back to the year 1559, when a local nobleman Stanislaw Janikowski founded the town of Janino. Its name was changed into Janikow after a few years, and the town remained in the hands of the Janikowski family until the mid-17th century. It remained a small and insignificant place, with population of approximately 2,000. Janikow had a parish school and a hospital, but its development was slow, due to proximity of well-established, ancient centers of Ozarow and

. In the 18th century, Janikow belonged to the Sapieha family, which encouraged the stonemasons. Among notable residents of the town was Tomasz Hutter, a sculptor, popular in the 18th century

Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name Małopolska ( la, Polonia Minor), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a s ...

. In 1767, during a thunderstorm, almost whole town burned, together with a town hall and all documents. Janikow never recovered from the destruction, and in 1827 was stripped of town charter. In the late 19th century, while part of Russian-controlled

Congress Poland Congress Poland, Congress Kingdom of Poland, or Russian Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It w ...

, it had the population of 323, with 39 houses. The village was burned in June 1915, during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

fights between Austrians and Russians. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the village went through gradual depopulation. In 1960, its population was 275, and by 1998, it shrank to 195. Janikow has St. Anna parish church (1873), built in the location of the first, wooden church from the 16th century, which burned in the 1767 fire.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Janikow, Swietokrzyskie Voivodeship Villages in Opatów County