Arkansas Facts

The term Arkansas means “south wind” and is derived from a name used by some Native Americans to describe the Quapaws, an early tribe in the area. The region was spelled various ways over the years, but entered the Union as Arkansas in l836.  The pronunciation “Ark-an-saw” was determined by the General Assembly of 1881.

Vital Statistics:
   -  Population – 2.67 million (33^rd state in size)
   -  Area – 53,187 square miles (27^th state in size)
   -  Capital City – Little Rock
   -  Climate- Average annual temperature:  61.4 degrees Fahrenheit 

State Symbols:

Mockingbird	Apple Blossom	Pine Tree
"The People Rule"	"Arkansas" (You Run Deep in Me) by Wayland Holyfield "Oh, Arkansas" by Terry Rose, Gary Klaff	"The Natural State"
State Motto	State Song	State Nickname

Tantalizing Tidbits
   -  There are 600,000 acres of lakes, more than 9,700 miles of streams and rivers, and over 2.6 million acres of national forests in Arkansas.
   - Our nation’s first national park (Hot Springs) and first national river (Buffalo) are located in Arkansas.
   -  Items manufactured in the state include steel, plastics, furniture, prepared foods, chemicals, boats, electric motors, machine tools, and pulp and paper products.
   -  With the exception of citrus fruits, Arkansas grows practically every crop produced in the country.  It’s a leader in rice, soybeans, cotton, commercial broilers, chickens, turkeys and catfish.
   - Timber, petroleum, natural gas and bromine are the state’s top extracted resources.
   -  The only diamond mine open to the public in the world is Crater of Diamonds State Park near Murfreesboro.  And Arkansas’s quartz crystal deposits in the Hot Springs/Mount Ida area are world famous.