Epic Name vs. Epic Link

The Epic Link field is a relational cross-reference, to the higher-level Epic of an issue. An Epic Link is available for all task types.

When you create a new Epic, the Epic Name field appears. This is used to identify the new Epic. By default, only the task type can be defined as Epic in Jira. This identifies all issues that belong to the Epic.

From Jira version 6.2.2 onwards, when you add the Epic Link field to the task navigation, the Epic Name is displayed instead of the task key.

Summary

• Epic Name is only displayed for in issues of type Epic
• Issue types with other types, except Epic, will only get the Epic link