The name of Mount Okukane in the Japanese language is formed from two kanji: 奥, meaning behind or rear and 鐘, meaning bell or chime. The name of the mountain is an abbreviation for , a reference to Mount Okukane being the farthest to the rear of the many mountains called Kanetsuri. The mountain appears in maps beginning in the Edo period (1603 - 1868), the earliest being in 1648.