The receptor was first named the "quisqualate receptor" by Watkins and colleagues after a naturally occurring agonist quisqualate and was only later given the label "AMPA receptor" after the selective agonist developed by Tage Honore and colleagues at the Royal Danish School of Pharmacy in Copenhagen.
O primeiro nome que recibiu foi "receptor de quisqualato" que lle deron Watkins e colegas por un agonista natural chamado quisqualato (derivado da planta Quisqualis) e máis tarde déuselle o nome de "receptor de AMPA" polo agonista selectivo desenvolvido por Tage Honore e colegas na Escola Real Danesa de Farmacia de Copenhague.