Daifuku are said to have originally been called daifuku-mochi or harabuto-mochi, both written with Chinese characters meaning 'large belly rice cake', because the feeling of fullness lasts a long time.
大福餅は、腹持ちがよいことから腹太餅（はらぶともち）、大腹餅（だいふくもち）と呼ばれていたという。