The name Valpolicella, used to indicate the region stretching from the southwest slopes of the Monti Lessini to the bend of the River Adige as it slopes downwards towards Verona after the mouth with the River Chiusa, first appears in the 12th century. Before this time it was not mentioned and it is only from the 12th century onwards that the name "Vallis Pulicella" appears.

In previous documents the valleys of Veriago (covering the easternmost part of the present Valpolicella and corresponding to the area covering the village of Negrar) and Pruviniano (Val Provinianense, which covers the remaining central portion) are mentioned. The distinction disappears halfway through the 12th century during the period of the seigniory of the city of Verona when the city's officials reached the valley by the Adige and landed at the river port of Pol, the place from which the name Valpolicella is derived.

Later, the region was formed into an estate and entrusted to Federico della Scala, cousin of Cangrande, who assumed the title of Count of Valpolicella. After the seigniory of Federico della Scala, the Valpolicella, which had become an administrative unit, gained a form which it still maintains today.