A document of 1340 that fixes the boundaries of Ružomberok lists Vlkolínec among the town's “streets” — an odd word for a hamlet on a mountain shelf, but it shows who it belonged to. The settlement itself took shape in the second half of the fourteenth century, most likely put there by families from Biely Potok in the valley below, and the ground lay within the estate of Likava castle, which controlled this end of Liptov. The first indirect written mention of the place is usually given as 1376. The name comes from vlk, wolf: there were plenty in the forest behind.Listina z roku 1340, ktorá vymedzuje hranice Ružomberka, uvádza Vlkolínec medzi „ulicami“ mesta — čudné slovo pre osadu na horskej terase, no dobre ukazuje, komu patrila. Samotná osada sa formovala v druhej polovici 14. storočia, najskôr ju založili rodiny z Bieleho Potoka dolu v doline, a pozemky ležali na panstve hradu Likava, ktorý ovládal tento koniec Liptova. Prvá nepriama písomná zmienka o mieste sa zvyčajne uvádza k roku 1376. Meno pochádza od slova vlk: v lese za dedinou ich bolo dosť.
