diff --git a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/federationapi/routing/backfill.go b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/federationapi/routing/backfill.go
index 935c33420..1b5f138a0 100644
--- a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/federationapi/routing/backfill.go
+++ b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/federationapi/routing/backfill.go
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ func Backfill(
 	query api.RoomserverQueryAPI,
 	roomID string,
 ) util.JSONResponse {
-	var res api.QueryPreviousEventsResponse
+	var res api.QueryBackfillResponse
 	var eIDs []string
 	var limit string
 	var exists bool
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ func Backfill(
 	}
 
 	// Populate the request.
-	req := api.QueryPreviousEventsRequest{
+	req := api.QueryBackfillRequest{
 		EarliestEventsIDs: eIDs,
 		ServerName:        request.Origin(),
 	}
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ func Backfill(
 	}
 
 	// Query the roomserver.
-	if err = query.QueryPreviousEvents(httpReq.Context(), &req, &res); err != nil {
+	if err = query.QueryBackfill(httpReq.Context(), &req, &res); err != nil {
 		return httputil.LogThenError(httpReq, err)
 	}
 
diff --git a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/api/query.go b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/api/query.go
index 602e58874..a544f8aa2 100644
--- a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/api/query.go
+++ b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/api/query.go
@@ -214,8 +214,8 @@ type QueryStateAndAuthChainResponse struct {
 	AuthChainEvents []gomatrixserverlib.Event `json:"auth_chain_events"`
 }
 
-// QueryPreviousEventsRequest is a request to QueryPreviousEvents.
-type QueryPreviousEventsRequest struct {
+// QueryBackfillRequest is a request to QueryBackfill.
+type QueryBackfillRequest struct {
 	// Events to start paginating from.
 	EarliestEventsIDs []string `json:"earliest_event_ids"`
 	// The maximum number of events to retrieve.
@@ -224,8 +224,8 @@ type QueryPreviousEventsRequest struct {
 	ServerName gomatrixserverlib.ServerName `json:"server_name"`
 }
 
-// QueryPreviousEventsResponse is a response to QueryPreviousEvents.
-type QueryPreviousEventsResponse struct {
+// QueryBackfillResponse is a response to QueryBackfill.
+type QueryBackfillResponse struct {
 	// Missing events, arbritrary order.
 	Events []gomatrixserverlib.Event `json:"events"`
 }
@@ -298,10 +298,10 @@ type RoomserverQueryAPI interface {
 	) error
 
 	// Query a given amount (or less) of events prior to a given set of events.
-	QueryPreviousEvents(
+	QueryBackfill(
 		ctx context.Context,
-		request *QueryPreviousEventsRequest,
-		response *QueryPreviousEventsResponse,
+		request *QueryBackfillRequest,
+		response *QueryBackfillResponse,
 	) error
 }
 
@@ -332,8 +332,8 @@ const RoomserverQueryMissingEventsPath = "/api/roomserver/queryMissingEvents"
 // RoomserverQueryStateAndAuthChainPath is the HTTP path for the QueryStateAndAuthChain API
 const RoomserverQueryStateAndAuthChainPath = "/api/roomserver/queryStateAndAuthChain"
 
-// RoomserverQueryPreviousEventsPath is the HTTP path for the QueryMissingEvents API
-const RoomserverQueryPreviousEventsPath = "/api/roomserver/queryPreviousEvents"
+// RoomserverQueryBackfillPath is the HTTP path for the QueryMissingEvents API
+const RoomserverQueryBackfillPath = "/api/roomserver/QueryBackfill"
 
 // NewRoomserverQueryAPIHTTP creates a RoomserverQueryAPI implemented by talking to a HTTP POST API.
 // If httpClient is nil then it uses the http.DefaultClient
@@ -466,13 +466,13 @@ func (h *httpRoomserverQueryAPI) QueryStateAndAuthChain(
 	return commonHTTP.PostJSON(ctx, span, h.httpClient, apiURL, request, response)
 }
 
-// QueryPreviousEvents implements RoomServerQueryAPI
-func (h *httpRoomserverQueryAPI) QueryPreviousEvents(
+// QueryBackfill implements RoomServerQueryAPI
+func (h *httpRoomserverQueryAPI) QueryBackfill(
 	ctx context.Context,
-	request *QueryPreviousEventsRequest,
-	response *QueryPreviousEventsResponse,
+	request *QueryBackfillRequest,
+	response *QueryBackfillResponse,
 ) error {
-	span, ctx := opentracing.StartSpanFromContext(ctx, "QueryPreviousEvents")
+	span, ctx := opentracing.StartSpanFromContext(ctx, "QueryBackfill")
 	defer span.Finish()
 
 	apiURL := h.roomserverURL + RoomserverQueryMissingEventsPath
diff --git a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/query/query.go b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/query/query.go
index d2d08e249..39e9333cf 100644
--- a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/query/query.go
+++ b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/roomserver/query/query.go
@@ -458,11 +458,11 @@ func (r *RoomserverQueryAPI) QueryMissingEvents(
 	return err
 }
 
-// QueryPreviousEvents implements api.RoomServerQueryAPI
-func (r *RoomserverQueryAPI) QueryPreviousEvents(
+// QueryBackfill implements api.RoomServerQueryAPI
+func (r *RoomserverQueryAPI) QueryBackfill(
 	ctx context.Context,
-	request *api.QueryPreviousEventsRequest,
-	response *api.QueryPreviousEventsResponse,
+	request *api.QueryBackfillRequest,
+	response *api.QueryBackfillResponse,
 ) error {
 	var err error
 	var front []string
@@ -773,14 +773,14 @@ func (r *RoomserverQueryAPI) SetupHTTP(servMux *http.ServeMux) {
 		}),
 	)
 	servMux.Handle(
-		api.RoomserverQueryPreviousEventsPath,
-		common.MakeInternalAPI("queryPreviousEvents", func(req *http.Request) util.JSONResponse {
-			var request api.QueryPreviousEventsRequest
-			var response api.QueryPreviousEventsResponse
+		api.RoomserverQueryBackfillPath,
+		common.MakeInternalAPI("QueryBackfill", func(req *http.Request) util.JSONResponse {
+			var request api.QueryBackfillRequest
+			var response api.QueryBackfillResponse
 			if err := json.NewDecoder(req.Body).Decode(&request); err != nil {
 				return util.ErrorResponse(err)
 			}
-			if err := r.QueryPreviousEvents(req.Context(), &request, &response); err != nil {
+			if err := r.QueryBackfill(req.Context(), &request, &response); err != nil {
 				return util.ErrorResponse(err)
 			}
 			return util.JSONResponse{Code: http.StatusOK, JSON: &response}