The mountain's toponym was officially adopted April 7, 1955, by the Geographical Names Board of Canada.

[3] The mountain is named after Royal Canadian Air Force Flight Sergeant Nathaniel Wesley McNair (1917–1943), from Chilliwack.

McNair perished during a raid against Berlin when his Avro Lancaster crashed during WWII in Europe.

[5] Most weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean, and travel east toward the Coast Mountains where they are forced upward by the range (Orographic lift), causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall.

As a result, the Coast Mountains experience high precipitation, especially during the winter months in the form of snowfall.