The name derives from the language of the Kaurna people, a word written as either Ngangkiparri or Ngangkiparingga (the -ngga suffix means "at").

[5] On 13 April 1831, British military officer Captain Collet Barker and his party arrived at Cape Jervis on the Isabella.

He examined the east coast of Gulf St Vincent and found the Onkaparinga River on 15 April.

After anchoring and heading inland Barker then explored the ranges inland, north of the present site of Adelaide, and climbed Mount Lofty where he also sighted the Port River inlet, Barker Inlet and the future Port Adelaide.

[7] The first European settlers to explore its sources and the Onkaparinga Valley were the party of George Imlay and John Hill in January 1838.