Chiunglin was once called Pinglin. During the Ming and Qing, there were six metropolitan graduates and seven provincial graduates from the settlement. For this reason, the Ming emperor Tianqi renamed it Chiunglin, after the place emperors feasted new graduates of the examination system.
蔡顯國說，瓊林原名「平林」，自古文風鼎盛，文官武將輩出，明清兩代總計就出過進士 6 人、舉人 7 人，明熹宗才賜名為「瓊林」（舊時皇帝宴請新科進士的地方）。