Mythologically, the name Andaman is presumed to be derived from hanuman, who was known to the Malays as Handuman. Since pre-historic times, these islands were the home of aboriginal tribes. The tribes of the Andaman group of islands are the Great Andamanese, Onges, Jarawas and Sentinalese, all of Negrito origin, while the tribes of Nicobars are the Nicobarese and Shompens, both of Mongoloid stock.

The first settlement by the British took place in 1789, which was later abandoned in 1796. The second settlement was basically a penal settlement, taken up in1858, after the war of independence, followed by the settlement of Convicts, Moplas, some tribes from Central and United Provinces, refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan, Burma and Sri Lanka as well as ex-servicemen.