Why do they pronounce arkansas

And the same native word that became Wichita in Kansas went with the Frenchified spelling Ouachita in Arkansas. Actually, it took some time for Arkansans to come to agreement on pronunciation. Ever since, Americans have gone along with the s-less, first-syllable-stressed version of Arkansas. At least when it comes to the state name. The 'a' in each syllable with the Italian sound, and the accent on the first and last syllables, being the pronunciation formerly universally and now still most commonly used.

Apparently, some eggheads at Webster's dictionary had changed the entry for Arkansas to include a new pronunciation note — "Ar- kan- sas, formerly Arkansaw" — and that sent red-blooded Arkansans into a lexicographical tizzy. The authors of the Arkansas Historical Society pamphlet called it a "vicious pronunciation" with "no basis of reason, authority, or prior polite usage. The Arkansas Historical Society members argued that the divergent pronunciations of Arkansas and Kansas stem from similar French names given to two different Native America tribes.

A Siouan tribe lived near the modern-day Kansas River and early French explorers called them by a version of their name, which sounded to their French ears like "Kansa. Those tribal names, as the French rendered them, look and sound very similar, but again, for reasons unknown, early French explorers wrote out the associated place names very differently. Clearly, at some point an "r" was added to the original Algonquin name Akansa.

One theory, mentioned in a article in the Arkansas Historical Quarterly, is that the Akansa used a particularly cool bow when hunting and the French word for bow is "arc. Other French explorers called the Arkansas river "la riviere des arcs" "river of the bends" for its curvy course. Either example could explain why the French Colonel de Champigny, writing in , chose to call the region "Arckantas. Which brings us to the pronunciation question.

The Arkansas Historical Society pamphlet concluded that both Kansas and Arkansas have roots in similar Indian tribal names, but that Kansas chose to follow the standard English pronunciation — marked by the hard "a" sound in "can" and vocalizing the final "s" — while Arkansas stuck with the original French pronunciation. It's the long French and Italian "ah" sound, wrote the Arkansas Historical Society, which explains why Arkansas was sometimes spelled "Arkansaw," including in the peace treaty between the United States and the Quapaw.

Apparently this is just a fanciful dreamed up idea. Do you have anymore supporting information than what you presented? Any comments, corrections or retractions? Don Crouch, Sacramento, Ca.

My Reply. Dear Don. I am not sure why you think this article is a blog. It is just what I state it to be, a recollection from my childhood days. I have no problem with anyone thinking it is a "fanciful dreamed up idea". This site is intended for people interested in our little town and I do not put anything on with the intention of starting an argument. The area was first settled by the French, who usually used the spelling Arkansa to refer to the tribe and to the village in which they lived.

They used the plural, Arkansas, to refer to members of the tribe. After the region was de-Frenched in the early nineteenth century, the pronunciation remained the French one--or, rather, an Anglicized version of the French one--which would be something like "Arkansaw.

But in the end, the original Arkansas spelling is the one that prevailed, but it did so with an Anglicized version of the French pronunciation. By the way, the state of Kansas, also named by the French for an Indian people and with the -s representing a French plural, dropped the French pronunciation entirely and adopted an English pronunciation based on the Kansas spelling, which is why the pronunciation of Kansas and Arkansas differ.

This makes much more sense than changing a pronunciation just because it is different than what the French speak. Dorsey Dhegiha. They were usually on some part of the Kansas River, which derives its name from them. Why I think it is pronounced the way most Kansans pronounce it is our business. Your Pastor is correct because once a Kansan, always a Kansan. We can't explain it; it is just the way we are.

Origin of state's name: French interpretation of a Sioux word "acansa," meaning "downstream place. They changed the Sioux name to french. Kansans are very glad that Arkansas decided to make their state name pronunciation different for more than one reason. I must assume, that since they are the only State to make the pronunciation of their State official, they must have felt a need to do so to justify their pronunciation.

If Arkansas wants to re-write history that is their prerogative, so be it; Just leave the name of the river the way it was intended. I have no problem with that. That doesn't change the way we pronounce our river and we are more than happy to pronounce their state their way.