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As in many indigenous cultures around the world, in their own language, the word "Ainu" simply means "human being" or "person." The relationship of the Ainu to the [[Emishi]] or other indigenous groups pushed back from Eastern Japan to Tôhoku, and eventually to Hokkaidô, in earlier periods is unclear, as is the relationship of the Ainu and the Japanese ("[[Yamato people]]") to the [[Jomon Period|Jômon]]/[[Yayoi Period|Yayoi]] divide.
As in many indigenous cultures around the world, in their own language, the word "Ainu" simply means "human being" or "person." The relationship of the Ainu to the [[Emishi]] or other indigenous groups pushed back from Eastern Japan to Tôhoku, and eventually to Hokkaidô, in earlier periods is unclear, as is the relationship of the Ainu and the Japanese ("[[Yamato people]]") to the [[Jomon Period|Jômon]]/[[Yayoi Period|Yayoi]] divide.
While some suggest that the Ainu are direct descendants of the Jômon people who settled the Japanese islands around 12,000 years ago (or earlier), there is much which remains unknown about the ethnic origins of the Ainu. Some research has suggested genetic or ethnic connections with peoples as far away as Tibet and the Andaman Islands.<ref name=soas>Gallery labels, "Master - An Ainu Story," photo exhibit by Adam Isfendiyar, SOAS Brunei Gallery, Fall 2018.</ref>
Whatever their ethnic origins, the term "Ainu" is generally used only in discussions of the 14th century and beyond, following certain developments in the merging of various Satsumon (Emishi) and Okhotsk cultures.<ref name=soas/>
Ainu/Emishi history is generally divided into the following periods:
*Jômon (before 100 BCE)
*Jômon (before 100 BCE)
*''[[Zoku-Jomon Period|Zoku-Jômon]]'' (lit. "continued Jômon"; 100 BCE - 800 CE)
*''[[Zoku-Jomon Period|Zoku-Jômon]]'' (lit. "continued Jômon"; 100 BCE - 800 CE)