Southpaw

A southpaw is a lefthander, an American term that dates from c. 1880, supposedly from baseball. At a particular baseball park in Chicago, the pitcher threw the ball at the batter in a westerly direction. Therefore, if the pitcher were left-handed, his paw or hand would be facing south. However, an earlier citation from c. 1850 states that southpaw was a term for a left-handed boxer. There is still a debate as to which sport coined the expression. Baseball still seems the best bet because at least a plausible reason is given for ‘south’ part.