The settlement of Cojumatlán was founded in 1531. Its name means "place of weasels", from the Nahuatl word "cutzamalí", "weasel". It was incorporated as the municipality of Régules in the district of Jiquilpan on 2 April 1910, taking its name after Nicolás de Régules, a general who fought against the French intervention in Mexico. In 1985 the municipality changed its name to Cojumatlán de Régules.