Arkansas

A few place-names—such as Arkansas itself, Choctaw, Caddo, and Ouachita—attest to the onetime presence of American Indians in the Territory of Arkansas, mostly members of the Caddoan tribe, with the Cherokee the most influential.

Arkansas English is essentially a blend of Southern and South Midland speech, with South Midland dominating the mountainous northwest; and Southern, the southeastern agricultural areas. Common in the east and south are redworm (earthworm) and mosquito hawk (dragonfly). In the northwest appear south Midland whirlygig (merry-go-round) and sallet (garden greens).

In 2000, 2,368,450 Arkansans—95% of the residents five years old or older—spoke only English at home, a decrease over the 97.2% recorded in 1990.

The following table gives selected statistics from the 2000 census for language spoken at home by persons five years old and

over. The category "Other Pacific Island languages" includes Chamorro, Hawaiian, Ilocano, Indonesian, and Samoan.

LANGUAGE	NUMBER	PERCENT
Population 5 years and over	2,492,205	100.0
Speak only English	2,368,450	95.0
Speak a language other than English	123,755	5.0
Speak a language other than English	123,755	5.0
Spanish or Spanish Creole	82,465	3.3
German	7,444	0.3
French (incl. Patois, Cajun)	7,312	0.3
Vietnamese	3,467	0.1
Chinese	2,529	0.1
Laotian	2,502	0.1
Tagalog	1,627	0.1
Korean	1,250	0.1
Japanese	1,193	0.0
Other Pacific Island languages	1,185	0.0
Italian	1,106	0.0