In and after the Yayoi period, people who belonged to the Jomon culture (an ancient culture in Japan) or the Satsumon culture (an ancient culture in Hokkaido) continually moved southward from Hokkaido to settle in the Tohoku region; therefore, historically the Tohoku region followed a different path from that of the region south of Kanto.
東北地方は弥生時代以降も続縄文文化や擦文文化に属する人々が北海道から南下して住み着くなど、関東以南とは異なる歴史を辿った。