Ioánnina, also Yannina or Janina, city, northwestern Greece, administrative center of Epirus Region. Located within an agricultural and livestock-raising area, Ioánnina is a commercial center and distribution point for the outlying district. It has a large textile industry, and gold and silver jewelry are manufactured here. Ioánnina was founded by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I about 527 AD and during the early Middle Ages was part of the Eastern Roman Empire. Ioánnina was annexed to the Ottoman Empire in the 1430s. The city was taken by Greece in 1913. During World War II Ioánnina was the site of heavy fighting, and the city was eventually captured by Germany in 1941. Population (1991) 56,699.
