The first microdistrict, or "Žirmūnai I", which is district's middle section, was built in 1962—67 in accordance with a project by architect Birutė Kasperavičienė, who was avarded the USSR State Prize in 1968, together with architect Bronislovas Krūminis and engineers Ṧmuelis Liubeckis and Vaclovas Zubras; it was the first time this award had been presented to the designers of a large-scale residential construction. The second microdistrict, "Žirmūnai II", which is the southernmost of the three, was built in 1964—68, its architect being Nijolė Chlomauskienė. And the third, the northernmost microdistrict, "Žirmūnai III" designed by architect Laima Burneikienė was built in 1964—69 in the site of the former village of Paneriškės. The city district was then named after the formerly Lithuanian village of "Žirmūnai" (), now situated 16 kilometres from the Lithuania–Belarus border in the Voranauski District, Hrodna Province of Belarus. This village is where Karol Podczaszyński, an architect and designer of Tuskulėnai Manor, was born. Hence the future district's major street Žirmūnų was named after the village as it is seen in the map of 1942 and gave its name to the entire district.