Kolky, Volyn Oblast

Kolky (Колки), also Kolki (Kolki; Kołki; Колки; Kolke), is a rural settlement in Lutsk Raion, Volyn Oblast, western Ukraine. It is located in the historic region of Volhynia. Kolky has a population of

Kolky is located on the confluence of the Styr and Rudka rivers, 51 kilometres north-east of Lutsk.

History
First time mentioned in 1545. The place has the urban-type settlement status since 1940.

The Jewish population was important before World War II, around a third of the total population (724 members in 1921, 860 in 1937). The German army occupied the city at the end of 1941. 50 Jews were murdered by the Ukrainian police during the summer of 1941. In October 1941, Jews were forced to live in a ghetto. In July 1942, the Jewish population was massacred by an Einsatzgruppen of Germans, members of Sicherheitsdienst and Gendarmerie and by Ukrainians, members of the local police.

The Kolky Republic, a wartime state, was organized in Kolky by Ukrainian partisans during the Second World War. Kolky Republic had its own currency, the Bofon, and public services and lasted from May to November 1943. The local Polish population fell victim to genocide. On June 13, 1943, dozens of Poles were burned alive in the local Catholic church by local Ukrainians as part of the genocide of Poles in Volhynia. Due to German air raids during its reoccupation of Kolky in November 1943, up to 500 residents of Kolky were killed and the town almost burned to the ground.

The heraldry and the gonfalon are adopted in 1997. The bell is a symbol of the defensive role of the city throughout history. The linaceae is a local resource.

Until 26 January 2024, Kolky was designated urban-type settlement. On this day, a new law entered into force which abolished this status, and Kolky became a rural settlement.

Notable people

 * Tadeusz Piotrowski, Polish mountaineer, was born in Kolki
 * Family of Esther Safran Foer, writer and mother of Jonathan Safran Foer