Following the unexpected meeting of French and English explorers, sailing in opposite directions around Australia, Matthew Flinders named this part of the coast – “Encounter Bay” . —
The Fleurieu Peninsula was named after the eminent French explorer, hydrographer, and statesman Charles Pierre Claret de Fleurieu by French explorer Nicolas Baudin. Baudin named the region during his 1802 expedition while mapping the southern coast of Australia. The name was officially adopted by the South Australian government in 1911 after a recommendation from the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia.