Kamnik was attested in 1143 as Stein (and as Stain in 1147 and Steine in 1205). The Slovene name was originally *Kam(en)ьnikъ, derived from the adjective form of the noun *kamy (accusative *kamenь) 'stone', referring to rocky terrain. The name of the settlement was changed from Kamnik to Kamnik pod Krimom (literally, 'Kamnik below Mount Krim') in 1953.