The townsite of Narrogin is located in the great southern agricultural region, 192 km south east of Perth and 32 km east north east of Williams. It is located on the Great Southern Railway, and when this line was opened in 1889, Narrogin was one of the original stopping places. The railway line was a private line, and the Company that built the line declared a private townsite here in 1891. The railway was purchased by the Government in 1896, and in 1897 Narrogin was gazetted as a government townsite.

Narrogin is an Aboriginal name, having been first recorded as "Narroging" for a pool in this area in 1869. The meaning of the name is uncertain, various sources recording it as "bat camp", "plenty of everything" or derived from "gnargagin" which means "place of water".