Why Arkansas is Pronounced Differently

Mr. Beat explains why Arkansas and Kansas are pronounced differently. Oh, and why Arkansas and Arkansas are pronounced differently. He even, like, totally gives additional information.

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#geography #kansas #arkansas

Simply put, it comes down to how both first got their names. Arkansas got its name from the French. Kansas got its name from English-speaking Americans.

In the 1500s, when the French arrived in North America in modern-day Kansas and Arkansas (oops I mean Arkansaw), they encountered two particular American Indian tribes. The first tribe, some Siouan-speaking folks who lived along the modern-day Kansas River, which they called the “Kansa.” And the second tribe, more commonly known today as the Quapaw, who lived along the modern-day Arkansas or Arkansaw River. The French called them by their Algonquin name, “Akansa.”

However, over time, future visitors to the area further complicated things by writing down different things when trying to document the rivers and areas these two tribes lived in. The Kansa were also called the Kantha, Kances, Konza, Kauzas, Cannes, and Canceys. Eventually Kansa won out, yes probably due to more English-speaking folks moving out there. Oh, and the plural of Kansa? Kansas. And those English speakers pronounce the s at the end of words by golly!

Meanwhile, the French name of the Quapaw, Akansa, won out for some reason. Oh, and the plural of Akansa? Akansas. But those French speakers DIDN’T pronounce the s at the end of words, so it was just Akansaw. But wait a second, where is the R? Well, no one knows for sure how or why the “R” was added to make it “Arkansas,” but one theory is that the Akansa used this awesome bow for hunting, and the French might have been really impressed with it. The French word for bow is “arc,” so maybe the French explorers being all impressed with their bows influenced their pronunciation. Another theory suggests that, since the Arkansas river arcs a lot, let’s call it ARCansaw.