The town's name is derived from the word batulambih, which roughly translates as many stones, a reference to the destructive eruptions by Mount Agung that have affected this part of Bali from time to time. The beach in Tulamben is not made of sand, but is entirely covered with fairly large, smooth stones. The modern name evolved over time, first to Batulamben and finally settling on the contraction Tulamben (batu means stone in Indonesian).