Tsaghkadzor literally means a valley of flowers or flower canyon in Armenian. The name of Tsaghkadzor is associated with the name of the nearby Tsaghkunyats Mountains, located to the west of the town.

Originally, it was known as Tsaghkunyats Dzor (Ծաղկունյաց ձոր) by its foundation during the 3rd century. In the 11th century, the town was known as Kecharuyk (Կեչառույք) or Kecharis (Armenian: Կեչառիս) derived from the Kecharis Principality under the Armenian Pahlavuni family. Later, during the 17th century, the town was called Darachichak by the Turkic invaders, keeping the name until 1947, when it was renamed Tsaghkadzor.