The name K2 is was first used by the Great Trigonometrical Survey of British India.
Thomas Montgomerie made the first survey of the Karakoram range.
He did so from Mount Haramukh which is 210 km (130 miles) to the south.
At the time he sketched the two most prominent peaks, and called them K1 and K2.

The policy of the Great Trigonometrical Survey was to use local names for mountains when possible.
K1 had the local name of Masherbrum which was soon used.
K2, however, appeared not to have a local name.
This may have been due to its remoteness.
It is not visible from Askole, the last village to the south, or from the nearest village to the north.
It is believed few local people would have gone to where it could be seen.
The name Chogori, from two Balti words, chhogo ("big") and ri ("mountain") (چھوغوری) has been suggested as a local name.
There is not much evidence for its widespread use, however.
It may have been invented by Western explorers.
It does form the basis for the name Qogir (simplified Chinese: 乔戈里峰; traditional Chinese: 喬戈里峰; pinyin: Qiáogēlǐ Fēng) which the Chinese government uses as the official name of the mountain.

As the mountain did not have a local name, the name Mount Godwin-Austen was suggested.
This was in honor of Henry Godwin-Austen who had been an early explorer of the area.
While the name was rejected by the Royal Geographical Society, it was used on several maps and is still used once in a while.

The label K2 is still the name by which the mountain is commonly known.
It is now also used in the Balti language, rendered as Kechu or Ketu.
The Italian climber Fosco Maraini stated that while the name K2 came by chance, is was good for the mountain.
He said:
... just the bare bones of a name, all rock and ice and storm and abyss.
It makes no attempt to sound human.
It is atoms and stars.
It has the nakedness of the world before the first man – or of the cindered planet after the last.
The name K2 is was first used by the Great Trigonometrical Survey of British India. Thomas Montgomerie made the first survey of the Karakoram range. He did so from Mount Haramukh which is 210 km (130 miles) to the south. At the time he sketched the two most prominent peaks, and called them K1 and K2.
The policy of the Great Trigonometrical Survey was to use local names for mountains when possible. K1 had the local name of Masherbrum which was soon used. K2, however, appeared not to have a local name. This may have been due to its remoteness. It is not visible from Askole, the last village to the south, or from the nearest village to the north. It is believed few local people would have gone to where it could be seen. The name Chogori, from two Balti words, chhogo ("big") and ri ("mountain") (چھوغوری) has been suggested as a local name. There is not much evidence for its widespread use, however. It may have been invented by Western explorers. It does form the basis for the name Qogir (simplified Chinese: 乔戈里峰; traditional Chinese: 喬戈里峰; pinyin: Qiáogēlǐ Fēng) which the Chinese government uses as the official name of the mountain.
As the mountain did not have a local name, the name Mount Godwin-Austen was suggested. This was in honor of Henry Godwin-Austen who had been an early explorer of the area. While the name was rejected by the Royal Geographical Society, it was used on several maps and is still used once in a while.
The label K2 is still the name by which the mountain is commonly known. It is now also used in the Balti language, rendered as Kechu or Ketu. The Italian climber Fosco Maraini stated that while the name K2 came by chance, is was good for the mountain. He said:
... just the bare bones of a name, all rock and ice and storm and abyss. It makes no attempt to sound human. It is atoms and stars. It has the nakedness of the world before the first man – or of the cindered planet after the last.
K2