Arkansas ( / ˈ ɑːr k ən s ɔː / ( listen ) AR -kən-saw [c] ) is a landlocked state in the south-central region of the Southern United States . [9] [10] It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage language , a Dhegiha Siouan language , and referred to their relatives, the Quapaw people. [11] The state's diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozark and Ouachita Moun
Arkansas is the 29th largest by area and the 34th most populous state, with a population of just over 3 million at the 2020 census . [5] The capital and most populous city is Little Rock , in the central part of the state, a hub for transportation, business, culture, and government. The northwestern corner of the state, including the Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Area and Fort Smith metropolitan area , is a population, education, and economic center. The largest city in the state's eastern par
Previously part of French Louisiana and the Louisiana Purchase , the Territory of Arkansas was admitted to the Union as the 25th state on June 15, 1836. [12] Much of the Delta had been developed for cotton plantations, and landowners there largely depended on enslaved African Americans ' labor. In 1861, Arkansas seceded from the United States and joined the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War . On returning to the Union in 1868, Arkansas continued to suffer economically, due to its o