The Arkansas toothpick is a heavy dagger with a 12–20-inch (30–51 cm) pointed, straight blade.[1] The knife is balanced and weighted for throwing and can be used for thrusting and slashing. James Black, known as the inventor of the Bowie knife, is credited with inventing the Arkansas toothpick.[1]
Some sources use Arkansas toothpick as a synonym for the Bowie knife, as opposed to the image of a large dagger.[2]
Although many jurisdictions worldwide have knife legislation regulating the length of a blade or the dagger-like profile of the Arkansas toothpick that one may own or carry, certain locales in the United States have legislation mentioning the "Arkansas Toothpick" in particular. These laws were passed in the late 1830s, in Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia as an attempt to prevent dueling.[3]