The Arkansas Accent Project

What sounds and sayings define the various people of the state of Arkansas and what these people may have in common? This creative scholarship draws upon interviews collected from the five major Arkansan regions: the Ozarks, the Arkansas River Valley, the Ouachitas, the Coastal Plain, and the Delta. Through interviews of various Native Arkansans, this study will illuminate the various accents of this state and the people who claim Arkansas as their home. In doing so, the study expands our understanding of who our people are and how their speech makes the Arkansas accent unique among Southern accents.