Since the game was imported through Nagasaki during the latter half of 16th century, it was called honken, Nagasakiken, or kiyoken (Kiyo was the word for Nagasaki used by Chinese scholars).
16世紀の後半に長崎から入ってきた遊びなので本拳・長崎拳・崎陽拳ともよばれた（崎陽は漢学者たちによる長崎の異称のこと）。