The way Arkansans talk is one of my favorite things about the Natural State. From the time I learned to talk, I grew up hearing and speaking fluent Arkansan—and to me there’s nothing like hearing a single sentence to know you’re home. The 11 sentences below don’t seem silly to us at all. They sound like home, but they sound a little different to out-of-staters. That’s alright, they’re fixin’ to get some education. Bless their hearts.
- “How ‘bout them Hogs?”
Flickr/thornypup There is a lot of agriculture in the Natural State, so it would be understandable if someone thought this referred to the welfare of actual hogs, but no. No, that is not what it means at all.
- “Thought I might get down to Toad Suck this weekend.”
Flickr/Ken Lund Here in Arkansas, Toad Suck can mean a park, a community, or a festival, but it doesn’t mean anyone is going to go actually suck on a toad. Though I suppose if one were so inclined that is none of our business.
- “It’s just over yonder, east of Possum Grape.”
Flickr/Jimmy Emerson, DVM I appreciate that this sounds like some kind of expression of extreme distance like “back of beyond,” but no, there is an actual, real place called Possum Grape.
- “You’ll want to go up to Fifty-Six.”
Flickr/Dave Thomas Fifty-Six isn’t a euphemism like eighty-six, it’s a small community near Mountain View, and it’s awfully pretty around those parts, so perhaps you should follow this advice. Mirror Lake, Blanchard Spring, and Blanchard Springs Caverns are all there.
- “We’re headed up the hill this weekend.”
Flickr/Carol Von Canon This one usually means it’s game day for the hogs, and there’s only one destination for a day like that: Fayetteville.
- “Woo Pig Sooie!”
Flickr/Bryan McDonald This is particularly confusing in its abbreviated form, WPS, which is frequently a three-letter Facebook status during football season. WPS doesn’t mean Whoa Panda Snacks or Where Panthers Sit or anything like that. It generally means the Hogs are doing well.
- “Don’t you look finer’n a frog hair split four ways.”
Flickr/Yamanaka Tamaki No, frogs don’t have hair, but if they did it would be pretty fine, wouldn’t it?
- “How’s your mama an’em?”
Flickr/Michael McLean Yourmamaanem might sound like a dystopian society from a young adult novel, but it’s not. It’s simply a group of people that includes your mom, your whole family, and basically everyone you know.
- “I’m going to the house.”
Flickr/Farther Along Rest assured, it doesn’t mean the big house or the white house or anything like that. It means “the house where I live.” Someone who is going to “the house” is going home.
- “I got this at the gettin’ place.”
Flickr/Clean Wal-Mart While it may sound to an out-of-towner like there’s a hip new store called The Gettin’ Place, Arkansans know what the gettin’ place means. It means it’s none of your business where I got it, what a silly question.
- “I’m fixin’ to get around, here in a minute.”
Flickr/Paul Nelson This one probably sounds completely unintelligible to the uninitiated, but it’s really very simple. The person using this phrase means that they are preparing to prepare to stand up, though the exact definition of “a minute” will likely remain a mystery until said person stands.
In short, this dog is good example of what it looks like when someone is “fixin’ to get around, here in a minute.”
You can find words only Arkansans understand at this link. For phrases we all heard growing up, read this article.
Flickr/thornypup
There is a lot of agriculture in the Natural State, so it would be understandable if someone thought this referred to the welfare of actual hogs, but no. No, that is not what it means at all.
Flickr/Ken Lund
Here in Arkansas, Toad Suck can mean a park, a community, or a festival, but it doesn’t mean anyone is going to go actually suck on a toad. Though I suppose if one were so inclined that is none of our business.
Flickr/Jimmy Emerson, DVM
I appreciate that this sounds like some kind of expression of extreme distance like “back of beyond,” but no, there is an actual, real place called Possum Grape.
Flickr/Dave Thomas
Fifty-Six isn’t a euphemism like eighty-six, it’s a small community near Mountain View, and it’s awfully pretty around those parts, so perhaps you should follow this advice. Mirror Lake, Blanchard Spring, and Blanchard Springs Caverns are all there.
Flickr/Carol Von Canon
This one usually means it’s game day for the hogs, and there’s only one destination for a day like that: Fayetteville.
Flickr/Bryan McDonald
This is particularly confusing in its abbreviated form, WPS, which is frequently a three-letter Facebook status during football season. WPS doesn’t mean Whoa Panda Snacks or Where Panthers Sit or anything like that. It generally means the Hogs are doing well.
Flickr/Yamanaka Tamaki
No, frogs don’t have hair, but if they did it would be pretty fine, wouldn’t it?
Flickr/Michael McLean
Yourmamaanem might sound like a dystopian society from a young adult novel, but it’s not. It’s simply a group of people that includes your mom, your whole family, and basically everyone you know.
Flickr/Farther Along
Rest assured, it doesn’t mean the big house or the white house or anything like that. It means “the house where I live.” Someone who is going to “the house” is going home.
Flickr/Clean Wal-Mart
While it may sound to an out-of-towner like there’s a hip new store called The Gettin’ Place, Arkansans know what the gettin’ place means. It means it’s none of your business where I got it, what a silly question.
Flickr/Paul Nelson
This one probably sounds completely unintelligible to the uninitiated, but it’s really very simple. The person using this phrase means that they are preparing to prepare to stand up, though the exact definition of “a minute” will likely remain a mystery until said person stands.
In short, this dog is good example of what it looks like when someone is “fixin’ to get around, here in a minute.”
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