Its relation to the earlier state of Jin is not clear, although the contemporary Chinese chronicle San Guo Zhi alleges that Jinhan was identical with Jin (while another record describes Jin as the predecessor of the Samhan as a whole). Jinhan and Byeonhan shared essentially the same culture, with varying religious customs, and apparently were not separated by a clear boundary.
The people claimed they were descendants of Qin dynasty migrants, fleeing Qin's force labor policies moved to the Mahan confederacy which give them the east land. The confederacy was also called Qinhan (秦韓). As immigrants, the kings might be Mahan people according to several historical books of China. But there is no further archeological evidences to prove this is true.
According to Samguk Sagi, the Silla Kingdom (around present-day Gyeongju), was founded by Bak Hyeokgeose in 57 BC, who united the six clans of Jinhan under his rule. The records are sparse and conflicting regarding the relationship of the names Jinhan, Saro, Seorabeol, and the later Silla kingdom.
Most theories indicate that Jinhan was located in the area later occupied by the Silla kingdom: the Gyeongju Basin and adjacent Sea of Japan coast. It would have been neighbored by the Byeonhan confederacy on the southwest, and by the much larger Mahan confederacy on the west. On the north it would have been bounded by the Chinese commanderies and the small coastal state of Dongye. However, some scholars place Jinhan in the Han River valley, bounded by Mahan on the north and Byeonhan on the south.