Kolin is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has a population of about 32,000. It lies some 55 kilometers (34 mi) east from Prague, on the Elbe River.

Ptolemy's world map mentions Kolin - Budorgis in the 2nd century. In the 12th and 13th-century German settlers were called in after the Germans leaving west during Migration and the colonization by Slavs. Kolin was founded by King Ottokar II of Bohemia in the 13th century, first mentioned in 1261. Later on, 1437, a castle was founded here. Between 1475 and 1488, Hynek ze Straznic, a Renaissance writer and son of King George of Podebrady, lived in the Kolin Castle.

The 1757 Battle of Kolin was fought during the Seven Years' War, and in 1944 a refinery in Kolín was bombed during the Oil Campaign of World War II. Zyklon B for Nazi concentration camps was produced there.

The historical center of the town has many gothic and baroque buildings. Most notable are the main market (Karls Square), the Jewish ghetto and synagogue, the very old and large Jewish cemetery, and St. Bartholomeus Church from the 13th century (a work of the architect Peter Parler).