Lin Hongnian (Chinese: 林鴻年, 1805–1885) was a politician, writer and calligrapher of the Qing dynasty.

[1] In 1836, he achieved the highest score in the Imperial examination and was appointed as the senior compiler in the Hanlin Academy (翰林院修撰).

He also compiled a document titled Nautical Route from Fujian to Ryukyus (福建往琉球針路) together with Gao Renjian.

[4] Later, Lin had served as the magistrate of Qiongzhou (瓊州知府, 1846–1849), Governor of Lei Qiong Circuit (雷瓊道道員, 1849–1859), magistrate of Lin'an (臨安知府, 1859–1863), the Judicial Commissioner of Yunnan (雲南按察使, 1863), and the Administrative Commissioner of Yunnan (雲南布政使, 1863–1864).

[5] In 1866, he was accused of "overstay due to being in dread of the rebels (畏寇逗留)" and was stripped of official position.