Zakynthos is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian islands. Zakynthos is a separate regional unit of the Ionian islands region, and its only municipality.

In Greek mythology the island was said to be named after Zakynthos, the son of the legendary Arcadian chief Dandarus.

Since Zakynthos was under the rule of the Venetian Republic, it had closer contact with Western literary trends than other areas inhabited by Greek people

Among the most famous Zakynthians is the 19th-century poet Dionysios Solomos, whose statue adorns the main town square. He is considered to be Greece’s national poet. He is best known for writing the Hymn to Liberty which was set to music by Nikolaos Mantzaros and became the Greek and Cypriot national anthem in 1865 and 1966 respectively.