Etzelwang is a municipality in the district of Amberg-Sulzbach in Bavaria in Germany.

However, the present municipality of Etzelwang was not created until the Bavarian administrative reforms of 1972 to 1975.

It was created from the political units of Neidstein, Kirchenreinbach, and Schmidtstadt.

It is not certain which Heinrich gave his name to the parish and subsequently to the municipality.

It is possible that it refers to Holy Roman Emperor Heinrich II, who founded the bishopric of Bamberg, to which the parish belonged.