Southpaw | Define Southpaw at Dictionary.com southpaw a person who is left-handed. 2. Sports. a player who throws with the left hand, especially a pitcher. Boxing. a boxer who leads with the right hand and stands with the right foot forward, using the left hand for the most powerful blows. adjective 1880-85, Americanism; south + paw 1 Dictionary.com Unabridged Examples from the Web for southpaw Expand Contemporary Examples The four-part story of Henry Wiggen begins with The southpaw, which was published a year after The Natural. The 13 Best Baseball Books: From ‘The Art of Fielding’ to ‘Moneyball’ Jimmy So April 4, 2012 Historical Examples Devore has always been very weak at the bat with a southpaw in the box, dragging his right foot away from the plate. Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager Burt L. Standish The southpaw fought to prevent his lips from curling with scorn, and to suppress a look of triumph in his eyes. Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager Burt L. Standish He was seeking to get at the southpaw with his bare left hand!

Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager Burt L. Standish The enemy over in southpaw had already advanced the prophecy that they would take the meeting-house. Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager Burt L. Standish “That may have been an accidental meeting,” said the southpaw. Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager Burt L. Standish The southpaw was doing some serious thinking as he walked back to the mound. Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager Burt L. Standish The swarthy little fabulist rose hastily to his feet, making a quick survey of the southpaw. Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager Burt L. Standish British Dictionary definitions for southpaw Expand noun 1. a boxer who leads with his right hand and off his right foot as opposed to the orthodox style of leading with the left 2.

of or relating to a southpaw Word Origin C20: from paw (in the sense: hand): originally a term applied to a left-handed baseball player: perhaps so called because baseball pitchers traditionally face west, so that a left-handed pitcher would throw with the hand on the south side of his body Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Word Origin and History for southpaw Expand n. "lefthander," 1885, originally baseball slang, of pitchers, often said to have been coined by Finley Peter Dunne ("Mr. Dooley"), Chicago sports journalist and humorist, in the days when, it is said, baseball diamonds regularly were laid out with home plate to the west. But south paw "a person's left hand" is attested from 1848 in the slang of pugilism.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper Slang definitions & phrases for southpaw Expand Southpaw - definition of southpaw by The Free Dictionary Southpaw - definition of southpaw by The Free Dictionary n. Slang A left-handed person, especially a left-handed baseball pitcher. [From the practice in baseball of arranging the diamond with the batter facing east to avoid the afternoon sun. A left-handed pitcher facing west would therefore have his pitching arm toward the south of the diamond.] southpaw (ˈsaʊθˌpɔː) n 1. (Boxing) a boxer who leads with the right hand and off the right foot as opposed to the orthodox style of leading with the left 2. any left-handed person adj (Boxing) of or relating to a southpaw [C20: from paw (in the sense: hand): originally a term applied to a left-handed baseball player: perhaps so called because baseball pitchers traditionally face west, so that a left-handed pitcher would throw with the hand on the south side of his or her body] south•paw 1. a person who is left-handed. 2. a baseball pitcher who throws with the left hand.

[1880–85, Amer.] Left-handed boxer who leads with his right hand and right foot forward. ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend: hurler , pitcher , twirler - (baseball) the person who does the pitching; "our pitcher has a sore arm" 2. southpaw - a person who uses the left hand with greater skill than the right; "their pitcher was a southpaw" individual , mortal , person , somebody , someone , soul - a human being; "there was too much for one person to do" Translations southpaw [ˈsaʊθpɔː] N (esp US) → zurdo m Want to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us , add a link to this page, or visit the webmaster's page for free fun content . Link to this page: twirler References in periodicals archive ? Burnett prompted gasps of admiration from the Edinburgh ringside crowd last weekend as he halted tough Englishman Fox in his tracks time and time again with some cracking southpaw head and body shots.

Big Apple high; Boxer Shorts The WBC world champion is known as one of the most protected middleweight strap holders in recent history, but will be pushed out of his comfort zone when it he defends his title against the Irish southpaw in El Paso, Texas on June 16. Copyright © 2003-2017 Farlex, Inc Disclaimer All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. southpaw | Definition, meaning & more | Collins Dictionary Definitions countable noun In sports such as boxing , baseball, football , and basketball , a southpaw is someone who mainly uses his left hand rather than his right hand. ⇒ Claussen was the league's best southpaw last season. COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers Word Frequency Definitions noun 1. a boxer who leads with the right hand and off the right foot as opposed to the orthodox style of leading with the left 2.

any left-handed person 3. of or relating to a southpaw Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers Word origin of 'southpaw' C20: from paw (in the sense: hand): originally a term applied to a left-handed baseball player: perhaps so called because baseball pitchers traditionally face west, so that a left-handed pitcher would throw with the hand on the south side of his or her body southpaw in American English (ˈsaʊthˌpɔ ; southˈpôˌ) Definitions What is Southpaw in Boxing? What is Southpaw in Boxing? Save The opposite of a right-handed person is a left-handed person who is also called the southpaw. The term however is mostly used in the context of sports such as baseball and boxing. Southpaw is a term used in boxing to denote a left-handed person. While the boxer who is right-handed is termed orthodox, the mirror-image of the stance adopted by a southpaw. Content Who are the famous southpaw boxers? It is normal for the majority of the people to be right-handed.

So to be a left-handed was considered unfavorable and in fact in some cultures use of left hand is strongly condemned and children with a tendency to use their left hand are forced to use their right hand. It is believed that about 20% of the population belongs to the category of southpaws. What is the history of the southpaw? The use of the term southpaw dates back to the 1880s used as baseball slang. The origin of the term southpaw is found in American baseball , probably used in Chicago where the ball field was positioned facing east and west, with home plate facing west. Due to this a left-handed player pitched from the south side and hence came to be known as southpaws. It is believed that the term southpaw was used by Finley Peter Dunne in 1887, who was in charge of the sports coverage for Chicago News. In boxing a southpaw has certain advantages over the orthodox players. A southpaw’s abnormal positioning makes it difficult for the right-handed person to deal with the punches that are delivered from the direction opposite to what the players are generally trained in boxing. The moves of a southpaw seem awfully wrong to the orthodox fighter.

He feels that the jab, the hook and the rear cross are all coming from the wrong side. As such a southpaw is considered dangerous, unorthodox and best avoided. The orthodox fighter may think that the southpaw does things ‘wrong’ but he can still be the winning streak. Who are the famous southpaw boxers? Mike Schreck was a heavyweight boxer who fought during 1899-1916 and is one of the first boxers to be recorded as a southpaw. But he was largely unsuccessful in his boxing bouts against the top fighters of his time. George “KO” Chaney and Knockout Brown were the early southpaws who were fairly successful in their left-handed stances. Chaney, a featherweight and a lightweight boxer, during 1910-1926 scored ninety-two knockouts from his hundred and thirty-seven winning bouts. Brown fought from 1908-1916 as a lightweight champion and scored nearly sixty knockouts from his ninety-three winning games. They scored a large number of knockouts being southpaws and thus got the word ‘knockout’ attached to their names.

But it was only with the coming of Lew Tendler, a great southpaw boxer during 1913 to 1928, that the southpaw boxer got his share of respect and honor in the game. What made him unique was that in spite of his southpaw, he delivered straight punches in the most perfect manner. Though he never won a title, he was considered a formidable fighter. Al McCoy, a middleweight boxer from 1914-1917, became the first southpaw champion winning against George Chip on the 1914 boxing bout in Brooklyn, New York. The all time famous southpaw fighters during 1980-1991 were Marvin Hagler and Pernell Whittaker. External References Boxing as a Southpaw | iSport.com Boxing as a Southpaw Boxing as a Southpaw The term “southpaw” actually originated in the sport of baseball, but it’s also very relevant in boxing. Boxing legends Pernell Whitaker, Marvin Hagler, and Hector Camacho were all southpaws who used their stance and creativity to overwhelm opponents in the ring.

With practice, you too can use your southpaw stance to your advantage. This guide takes a basic approach from a southpaw boxer’s point of view and introduces some techniques that can offer advantages in the ring. Nuts & Bolts In boxing, the term “southpaw” refers to a boxer in an unorthodox stance. Most southpaws are left-handed, and all southpaws position their right foot ahead of their left foot. Boxing as a southpaw provides some challenges. Most trainers, especially when instructing a class, demonstrate fundamentals from an orthodox stance. Southpaws have to concentrate and pay close attention to their instructors’ moves in order to do each movement with the opposite hand or foot. If he throws a right cross, you throw a left cross. If he throws a left hook, you throw a right hook. In addition, difficulties may arise while holding punch mitts for orthodox training partners. Although there are challenges, there are also distinct advantages as you begin sparring and competing. Most orthodox boxers have little experience fighting against southpaws, so your punches come from the “wrong” side from their perspective. Southpaws also throw punches from unfamiliar angles, which can confuse or surprise an orthodox boxer.

For example, if you pivot or step to your right after a combination, you will have the entire left side of your opponent’s body to punish. In this instance, there is no counterpunch he can land without turning his body as well. Footwork In general, southpaws abide by a golden rule when fighting orthodox boxers: Keep your right foot outside the opponent’s left foot. By following this rule, you remove yourself from the direct line of his right cross, which could otherwise be devastating. Constantly circling to your right keeps your opponent off-balance and makes it difficult for him to throw a clean cross down the pike. Occasionally, you can bounce to the left, catch your opponent off-guard, and land a mean left cross of your own. However, you need to be careful – you don’t want to bounce directly into your opponent’s right hand. Prior to the 20th century, almost all boxers fought in an orthodox stance because the southpaw stance was considered an incorrect and inferior technique. The first southpaw champ was not crowned until 1914 when Al McCoy won the World Middleweight Championship by knocking out George Chip. Additionally, pivoting allows you to get outside of your opponent.

Pivot to your right and expose openings along your opponent’s entire left side. He will be unable to counter unless he pivots to his right as well. You may want to pivot to your left, but make sure you don’t move into your opponent’s right hand. Offense The left cross is an essential tool for southpaw boxers. Because orthodox fighters aren’t always familiar with the southpaw style, they occasionally make the mistake of circling to their right or keeping their left foot inside a southpaw’s right foot. Take advantage of this mistake and throw a lead left cross. The lead left cross is an effective weapon if you use it properly. You can use your outside position to land a hook to the body or head after landing a left cross. The 2-3-2 (cross-hook-cross) combination and 2-3-3 (cross-hook-hook) combination work well against unsuspecting orthodox opponents. Also, remember that the cross and hook can be thrown interchangeably to the body or head. For example, when throwing the 2-3-3 combo you can throw the cross to the head, a right hook to the head, and another right hook to the body.

Another variation would be a cross to the body, a right hook to the body, and a right hook to the head. Steady jabs throughout a round pave the road for successful combinations. Double and triple-jab combinations often work well since orthodox fighters are accustomed to jabs arriving from the other side. Faces of Boxing ... Southpaw | Definition of Southpaw by Merriam-Webster See southpaw defined for kids Did You Know? Southpaw is of obscure origin. A popular theory holds that it comes from the onetime position of ballparks in relation to the sun. Supposedly, late 19th-century ballparks were laid out so that the pitcher looked in a westerly direction when facing the batter. The throwing arm of a left-handed pitcher would then be to the south-hence the name southpaw. This theory of its origin is undermined, however, by the fact that the original use of southpaw does not involve baseball at all. Rather, the term was used as early as 1848 to describe, simply, the left hand or a punch or blow given with the left hand.

Today, we often use southpaw as a good-natured term for a left-handed person, but the word is sometimes viewed as stigmatizing by left-handed people. 1871 First Known Use of southpaw 1871 Left-handedness | Left Handed Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia Main article: Handedness Hand orientation is developed in fetuses, most commonly determined by observing which hand is predominantly held close to the mouth. [2] In 2007, researchers discovered LRRTM1 , the first gene linked to increased odds of being left-handed. Possession of this gene slightly increases the possibility of left-handedness, although genetic predispotion to handedness has not yet been established. [3] [4] Vanishing Twin Theory: This theory postulates that left handed individuals were originally part of an identical twin pair, with the right-handed twin fetus failing to develop early in development. Mirror twins consist of one left handed and one right handed individual. Each twin is in effect a "mirror image" of the other. Such occurances would coincide with the approximate population of left-handed births (10-15%).

Long-term impairment of the right hand: People with long-term impairment of the right hand are more likely to become left-handed, even after their right hand heals. Template:Citation needed Such long-term impairment is defined as eight months or more. Testosterone : Exposure to higher rates of testosterone before birth can lead to a left-handed child. [5] This is the Geschwind theory, named after the neurologist who proposed it, Norman Geschwind . It suggests that variations in levels of testosterone during pregnancy shape the development of the fetal brain. Testosterone suppresses the growth of the left cerebral hemisphere and so more neurons migrate to the right hemisphere Template:Citation needed . The highly developed right hemisphere is now better suited to function as the center of language and handedness. The fetus is more likely to become left-handed, since the right hemisphere controls the left half of the body. The theory goes on to tie the exposure to higher levels of testosterone and the resultant right-hemisphere dominance to auto-immune disorders , learning disorders , dyslexia , and stuttering , as well as increased spatial ability . Social stigma and repression of left-handedness Edit Template:Off-topic There are many colloquial terms used to refer to a left-handed person, e.g.

"southpaw" or "goofy". Some are just slang or jargon words, while other references may be offensive or demeaning, either in context or in origin (e.g. the British "cack-handed"). In more technical contexts, 'sinistral' may be used in place of 'left-handed' and 'sinistrality' in place of 'left-handedness'. Both of these technical terms derive from sinestra, a Latin word meaning 'left'. [6] Left hand shakes are a sign of disrespect – however the left hand shake is the standard in the international Scouting movement. In Hebrew , as well as in other ancient Semitic and Mesopotamian languages, the term "left" was a symbol of power or custody. [7] The left hand symbolized the power to shame society, and was used as a metaphor for misfortune, natural evil , or punishment from the gods. This metaphor survived ancient culture and was integrated into mainstream Christianity by early Catholic theologians as Ambrose of Milan [8] to modern Protestant theologians such as Karl Barth [9] to attribute natural evil to God in explaining God's omnipotence over the universe . Meanings gradually developed from use of these terms in the ancient languages.

In many European languages, "right" is not only a synonym for correctness, but also stands for authority and justice: German recht, French droit, Spanish derecho, Portuguese direito; in most Slavic languages the root prav is used in words carrying meanings of correctness or justice. The right hand has also historically been associated with skill: the Latin word for right-handed is dexter, as in dexterity; indeed, the Spanish term diestro and the Italian 's destro, mean both "right-handed" and "skillful". In Irish, "deas" means "right side" and "nice". "Ciotóg" is the left hand and is related to "ciotach" meaning "awkward" [10] ; in French, "gauche" means "left" and is also a synonym of "maladroit", meaning "clumsy". Same for the Italian "maldestro" (literally "bad right" or "not right" with the term right here used as opposed to left and not to wrong) and the Dutch word "links".

Meanwhile, the English word sinister comes from the Latin word sinestra, which originally meant "left" but took on meanings of "evil" or "unlucky" by the Classical Latin era. Alternatively, sinister comes from the Latin word sinus meaning "pocket": a traditional Roman toga had only one pocket, located on the left side. The contemporary Italian word sinistra has both meanings of sinister and left (the masculine adjective for sinister being sinistro). The Spanish siniestra has both, too, although the 'left' meaning is less common and is usually expressed by izquierda, [11] a Basque word that made its way into Portuguese too. In Portuguese, the most common word for left-handed person, canhoto, was once used to identify the devil, and canhestro, a related word, means "clumsy" (sinistro means only "sinister"). Furthermore, in English, the expression "To have two left feet" refers to clumsiness in the domains of football or dancing. The left side is often associated with awkwardness and clumsiness.

The English expression "having two left feet", the Dutch expression "twee linkerhanden hebben", the Spanish expression "tener dos pies izquierdos", the German expression "zwei linke Hände haben", the Bulgarian expression "dve levi ratse", the French expression "avoir deux mains gauches" and the Czech expression "Mít obě ruce levé" ("to have two left hands") all mean being clumsy. Moreover, the German idiom "mit dem linken Fuß aufgestanden sein", the Spanish expression "levantarse con el pie izquierdo" and the french one "s'être levé du pied gauche" (literally, to have gotten up with the left foot) means to have a bad day and do everything wrong or unsuccessfully (like "to get out of the wrong side of the bed" in English). In ancient China, the left has been the "bad" side. The adjective "left" ( Chinese character : Template:Lang , Mandarin : zuǒ) means "improper" or "out of accord". For instance, the phrase "left path" ( Template:Lang , Mandarin: zuǒdao) stands for illegal or immoral means.

The pictograph for "left", Template:Lang depicts a left hand attending to work. In contrast, the pictograph for "right", Template:Lang (Mandarin: yòu) depicts a right hand in relation to the mouth, suggesting the act of eating. Contrast this pattern with the Muslim example below. At the same time, in modern Chinese conscience the left is firmly held as the dominant and "male" side, epitomized in the formula "man-left, woman-right". In Welsh , the word chwith means left, but can also mean strange, awkward, or wrong. The phrase tu chwith allan (left side out) refers to an object being inside-out. [12] In some Spanish-speaking countries, to do something por izquierda means to engage in corrupt conduct or employ illegitimate means; whereas por derecha or a derechas means to do it the right (legitimate) way. [13] In Dutch , "twee linkerhanden hebben" (having two left hands) means that one is clumsy or is a very poor handyman. The English equivalent of the phrase is "being all thumbs".

In Finnish , the word oikea means both right (okay, correct) and right (the opposite of left). In Hungarian , the word for right is jobb which also means better. The word for left is bal, and is used in expressions such as kétbalkezes ("having two left hands"), balszerencse (bad luck), bal lábbal kel fel ("get up (from bed) with the left leg", an omen that predicts a bad day coming up). In Swedish , vänster means left. The term vänsterprassel means infidelity, adultery; cheating. From this term the verb vänstra (lit. "lefting") is derived. In Ireland left handedness is called a "ciotógach" (kitt-OHG-och) which is the Irish language term for left-handed. It is frequently used amongst Irish people, e.g. "she gave him a slap of the ciotógach after he insulted her at the bar" the word ciotógach is not derogatory and is held with affection amongst left-handed people. The Scots term for left-handedness is corrie fistit. The term can be used to convey clumsiness.

Lloque Yupanqui , the third Sapa Inca , whose name means "the glorified lefthander" In some parts of the English-speaking world 'cack-handed' is slang for left-handed (it is also used to mean clumsy). The origin of this term is disputed, but some suggest it is derived from the Latin cacare, in reference to the habit of performing ablutions with the left hand, leaving the right hand 'clean'. [14] However, other source suggest that it is derived from the Old Norse word keikr, meaning "bent backwards" [15] Australians frequently use "cacky-handed". A less common Australian slang word for a left-handed individual is the term Molly-Dooker, whose origins cannot be ascertained for certain. [16] Amongst Muslims , and in some societies including Nepal and India , it is customary to use the left hand for cleaning oneself with water after defecating. The right hand is commonly known in contradistinction from the left, as the hand used for eating. [17] Even the word " ambidexterity " reflects the bias . Its intended meaning is, "skillful on both sides".

However, since it keeps the Latin root "dexter", which means "right", it ends up conveying the idea of being "right-handed at both sides". This bias is also apparent in the lesser-known antonym "ambisinistrous", which means "clumsy on both sides" and derives from the Latin root "sinister", which means "left". [18] Positive connotations Edit Among Incas left-handers were called (and now are called among the indigenous peoples of the Andes ) lloq'e ( Template:Lang-qu ) which has positive value. Peoples of the Andes consider that left-handers possess special spiritual abilities, including magic and healing . Third Sapa Inca - Lloque Yupanqui — was the left-hander, his name in transfer with Quechua means «the glorified lefthander». In tantras Buddhist, the left hand represents the wisdom. Southpaw File:Jonny Wilkinson 2007.jpg A left-handed individual may be known as a southpaw, particularly in a sports context. It is widely accepted that the term originated in the United States , in the game of baseball .

[19] Ballparks are often designed so that batters are facing east, so that the afternoon or evening sun does not shine in their eyes. [20] This means that left-handed pitchers are throwing with their south-side arm. [21] The Oxford English Dictionary lists a non-baseball citation for "south paw", meaning a punch with the left hand, as early as 1848, [22] just three years after the first organized baseball game, with the note "(orig. U.S., in Baseball)." [23] In boxing , someone who boxes left-handed is frequently referred to as southpaw. The term is also used to refer to a stance in which the boxer places the right foot in front of the left, so it is possible for a right-handed boxer to box with a southpaw stance. Most boxers, southpaw or otherwise, tend to train with sparring partners who adopt an orthodox stance which gives southpaws an advantage. Manny Pacquiao is an example of a southpaw (although he writes with his right hand). In the popular boxing film series Rocky , the main character Rocky Balboa is a 'southpaw'.

Southpaw is also a term in professional wrestling, often giving them the advantage. In tennis , southpaws hold the racket in their left hand. Because of this, their grip of the handle is supposedly adjusted in a slightly different style from right-handed players. Some world champion left-handed tennis players include Jimmy Connors , John McEnroe , Martina Navratilova , Marcelo Ríos , and Rafael Nadal . Accessibility of implements and skills File:Trackman marble wheel.JPG Left-handed people are sometimes placed at a disadvantage by the prevalence of right-handed tools in society. Many tools and devices are designed to be comfortably used with the right hand. For example, (right-handed) scissors , a very common tool, are arranged so that the line being cut along can be seen by a right-handed user, but is obscured to a left-handed user. Furthermore, the handles are often molded in a way that is difficult for a left-hander to hold, and extensive use in such cases can lead to varying levels of discomfort.

Most importantly, the scissoring or shearing action - how the blades work together (how they are attached at the pivot) - operates correctly for a right-hander, but a left-hander will tend to force the blades apart rather than shearing the target substance. [24] So-called ambidextrous scissors do not help, since the cutting blades are still set right-handed. Input devices for computers can present obstacles for the left-handed when optimized for the right. Some computer installations have the computer mouse placed on the right side of the keyboard and unable to be reposition to the left. The mouse itself is also sometimes shaped to fit the right hand better. Other input devices such as trackballs and trackpads can be positioned in such a way that they are difficult for left-handed. These may also have two buttons that, while functionally reversible, are sized for the convenience of the right-handed person.

File:2scissors-clean.jpg While European-style kitchen knives are symmetrical, Japanese kitchen knives have the cutting edge ground asymmetrically , with ratios ranging from 70-30 for the average chef's knife, to 90-10 for professional sushi chef knives; left-handed models are rare, and usually must be specially ordered or custom made. [25] Left-handed scissors require inverting both the handles and the blades if the left-handed user is to fully see the progress of the cut. Right-handed scissors place the thumb's blade on the left side, while left-handed scissors have this on the right side. This ensures the left hand's motion draws the blades together while cutting, ensuring a cleaner cut. File:Montre senestre.JPG Left-handed adaptations have even bridged the world of music; guitars are often made especially for left-handers, though generally at a higher cost, and with greatly reduced availability ( Jimi Hendrix was known to use a right-handed guitar flipped around to play left-handed). There have even been inverted pianos where the deepest notes correspond to the rightmost keys instead of the leftmost. [26] Inverted trumpets are made, too, but at a considerably higher cost.

Although the trumpet's valves are normally designed to be operated with the right hand, the prevailing belief is that left-handed trumpeters aren't at a significant disadvantage. The French horn , for example, is played with the left hand, yet most horn players are right-handed. Left-handed golf clubs were one of the earlier, and well-accepted, manifestations of a special version of an implement; the most notable left-handed-playing participant being Phil Mickelson (he is naturally right-handed). Other items which are inconvenient for left-handers include train-station turnstiles , can openers , circular saws, potato peelers , corkscrews , rulers , number keys on keyboards , watches , chequebooks , spiral notebooks , boomerangs , measuring cups and pencil sharpeners . Handwriting File:Barack Obama signs at his desk2.jpg It can be difficult for left-handed children to learn to write if the teacher does not take the student's left-handedness into account. In fact, even in the later 20th century, some UK schools were discouraging children from writing with their left hand, often seriously affecting the child's development ( Hansard 1998 ).

When properly done, left-handed writing is a mirror image to that of the right-hander, making the teaching process confusing for the right-handed teacher of a left-handed student. Some chairs are equipped with writing boards on the right side only, contributing to this behavior. The result is that left-handed students learn to write with their hand curled around the pen so that it can meet the paper at the same angle as the right-hander and also to account for the front page of notebooks and binders, as the books open so you write on the right side, which puts the binding on the left side, inhibiting the left hand from writing freely. [27] Once this habit is formed, it is difficult to break. [28] This curling of the hand results in the heel of the palm being placed behind the writing, forcing the writer to lift it off the paper and making the grip even more awkward. In addition, constantly lifting and replacing the hand over fresh ink often causes smudging, causing problems for many left-handed students, especially in exam situations. When the left hand is held correctly, it is below the writing, as is typical for right-handers.

Left-handed people who speak Arabic , Persian , Urdu , Hebrew or any other right-to-left language do not have the same difficulties with writing. The right-to-left nature of these languages prevents left-handers from running their hand on the ink as happens with left to right languages. However, because these alphabets were developed for right-handed people, the characters are still often more easily matched to a right-handed profile. Left-handers also have an advantage in learning 19th-Century copperplate hands, which control line-width by pressure on the point, because the proper angle for the pen point is slanted "northeast," which puts the right hand in an awkward, "crabbed" position. Some pen makers make bent nibs to allow right-handers to point the pen in the direction that allows the best control. Firearms Edit The vast majority of firearms are designed for right-handed shooters, with the operating handle, magazine release, and/or safety mechanisms set up for manipulation by the right hand, and fired cartridge cases ejected to the right. Also, scopes and sights may be mounted in such a way as to require the shooter to place the rifle against the right shoulder.

A left-handed shooter must either purchase a left-handed or ambidextrous firearm (which are manufactured in smaller numbers and are generally more expensive and/or harder to obtain), shoot a right-handed gun left-handed (which presents certain difficulties, such as the controls being improperly located for them or hot shell cases being ejected towards their body, especially their eyes or down their collar or right sleeve), or learn to shoot right-handed (which may be less comfortable or "natural" for them). A related issue is ocular dominance , due to which left-handed people may wish to shoot right-handed, and vice versa. Some modern firearms are ambidextrous (e.g. the FN P90 and Heckler & Koch P7 ), or can be converted between right- and left-handed operation (e.g. the Heckler & Koch G36 and Steyr AUG ). Bullpup rifles are particularly problematic for left-handers unless they can be reconfigured, since empty shells would be ejected straight into the shooter's face and cheek potentially causing injury.

The British LA-85 Assault Rifle must be fired right-handed, placing left-handed soldiers at a disadvantage; this policy does however mean that any soldier can pick up and immediately fire a fallen comrade's gun without checking its configuration and potentially needing to convert it. In contrast the Steyr AUG is of a modular design, and the ejection port and extractor can be switched/replaced to suit the handedness of the soldier operating it. The M-16 and its variants have a fixed ejection port, but being a conventional (i.e. not bullpup) design the ejection port is forward of the operator and hence able to be fired either handed. Circa 1980, with the introduction of the M16A2 version, a case deflector was incorporated adjacent to the ejector port to direct discarded shells in a more forward direction, making the rifle even more left hand operator friendly. The deflector is not always effective, however, as the ejected shell still stands a chance of hitting the left-handed shooter's cheek, especially in windy conditions. Lever action and pump action firearms present fewer difficulties for left-handers than bolt action weapons do.

Many weapons with adjustable sights allow for left-handed use, but a right eye dominant shooter is necessary to adjust. In fact, most weapons adjust well enough that a weapon will not eject shells into a left-hander's eye. Cameras Edit One of the few cameras ever produced for left-handers was the half-frame Yashica Samurai. Cameras predominantly have the hand grip, shutter release, film wind lever and commonly used selection buttons, switches and dials controlled by the right hand, lens controls (where present) tend to be accessible by either hand. When a left-handed person uses a right-handed camera the hand control can be less steady and hence produce camera shake leading to poorer pictures at low shutter speeds. Guitars Edit Most guitars are designed to be played right-handed (that is to say the right hand is used to strum or pick the strings while the left hand manipulates the fret board). Although a right-handed guitar may be converted for left-handed playing (as was most notably done by Jimi Hendrix , Paul McCartney , Tony Iommi and Kurt Cobain ), this always requires replacing the bridge and nut for the strings to fit and the intonation to be correct.

This "quick alternative" to getting a "real" left-handed guitar has only been necessary due to a considerable lack of true left-handed instruments, manufactured specifically for the left-handed player. Many guitar brands make left-handed versions of their popular products. Correlations with left-handedness Edit In his book Right-Hand, Left-Hand, [29] Chris McManus of University College London argues that the proportion of left-handers is rising and left-handed people as a group have historically produced an above-average quota of high achievers. He says that left-handers' brains are structured differently in a way that widens their range of abilities, and the genes that determine left-handedness also govern development of the language centres of the brain. McManus also says that the increase in the 20th century of people identifying as left-handed could produce a corresponding intellectual advance and a leap in the number of mathematical, sporting, or artistic geniuses. In 2006, researchers at Lafayette College and Johns Hopkins University in a study found that left-handed men are 15 percent richer than right-handed men for those who attended college, and 26 percent richer if they graduated.

The wage difference remains unexplained, and does not appear to apply to women. [30] Left-handedness and politics World Wide Words: Southpaw Random page Southpaw Q From Lance Schulz: I just recently discovered your site, and love it! Here’s one I’ve always wondered about — why are left-handed baseball pitchers referred to as southpaws? And, why aren’t right handed pitchers called northpaws? A As it happens, northpaw turns up often enough that it has been recognised in at least one slang dictionary and has an entry in the Oxford English Dictionary. As you’d guess, it’s usually intended as a joke, but not always signalled as such: In fact, the Fishers are missing left-handers entirely, as all 13 pitchers who began the year with the club are northpaws. Concord Monitor, New Hampshire, 10 Apr. 2005. I may not be the very best person to answer the first part of your question, as I am uninterested in any sport that runs the risk of raising a sweat, even vicariously.

And as I come from a country in which baseball is almost never played, my knowledge of the game could be written in felt-tipped pen on the back of a torn postage stamp. But as this is a language question, not a sporting one, perhaps I may be allowed to discuss the matter. The usual story about southpaw is set out in a standard work on the game: The oft-repeated etymology of the term is that it derives from the “fact” that ballparks were laid out with home plate to the west, which meant that a left-handed pitcher faced the west and threw with his “southern” limb. This westward orientation kept the glare of the afternoon sun out of the batter’s eyes and out of the eyes of the customers in the more expensive seats behind the plate during a game. The Dickson Baseball Dictionary, by Paul Dickson, Third Edition, 2009. Lefty Grove, southpaw Nobody conversant with the history of the game now believes this. It seems likely, Dickson comments, that the story was the invention of either the political humorist Finley Peter Dunne of the Chicago News or Charles Seymour of the Chicago Herald.

Dunne’s biographer says that Dunne invented it about 1887 because the Chicago ball park happened to be laid out that way; H L Mencken noted in The American Language that Richard J Finnigan, publisher of the Chicago Times, attributed the term to Seymour. Other reports suggest that the term was applied to a pitcher simply because he was left-handed, with the term being already known from elsewhere. Paul Dickson quotes Tim Murnane, a left-handed pitcher, as saying that the local newspaper in St Louis began to refer to him as a southpaw in 1876. I can’t find a reference to him in the archives of the paper that year, but another contemporary comment from the same paper shows that it was used for other players than just the pitcher. It adds support to the view that the story about the orientation of ball parks was an invention: The following good players have been engaged: Redmond, the little gallant short stop, with his south paw, who, by the way, is the “daddy of them all,” as his record of last season placed him on top of all the short stops. St Louis Globe-Democrat, 27 Feb. 1876.

Earlier examples, in fact, make no mention of baseball. One in the Milwaukee Daily Sentinel in August 1870 lists seven local newsboys, one of whom, James Sullivan, was nicknamed South-Paw. The OED has another, from 1848, referring to a heavy blow with the left hand (though the application of the term to boxing had to await the twentieth century). The earliest so far known is this, unearthed by Benjamin Zimmer very recently (October 2009): “Luk here mon, and convince yourself,” said he, holding up the Tickler, in the right paw, between the ceiling and the floor, and with the south paw pointing to the “bow, vow, vow.” The Tickler, 30 Jun. 1813. The Tickler was a comic newspaper published in Philadelphia. The speaker, Honest Bob, was commenting on the way that Yankees pronounced their Ws as Vs. Having rebutted the tale about the orientation of ball parks, I am left with no good explanation for where southpaw comes from. Nothing in the early examples gives us a clue. Conclusion: origin unknown. Sorry.

Share this page The Southpaw - TV Tropes The Southpaw You need to login to do this. Get Known if you don't have an account Share YMMV By definition: someone who's left-handed instead of right-handed or ambidextrous. Traditionally, baseball fields were oriented so that the batter, catcher, and umpire faced east to ensure that the setting sun wasn't in their eyes. As a result, when a pitcher is on the mound facing home plate, his left hand pointed south, so lefty pitchers came to be known as southpaws. The term has since entered general usage to indicate left-handed people. There is a perception that southpaws have an advantage, because they are different from right-handed opponents. And it has proven to be Truth in Television in quite a few sports besides baseball. For example, left-handed sword fighters' attacks come from an unusual angle compared with those by right handed opponents, making them more difficult to parry. And left handed—er, footed—soccer players have a similar advantage over right handed goalkeepers, making them ideal for penalty kicks. As a result, in many sports the proportion of left-handed players is significantly higher than in the general population.

An inversion, Situational Southpaw, exists when the character is not normally left-handed, but is forced to become left-handed, either through forceful education , injury or some apparatus that disables the character's right hand or arm ( Arm Cannons are a popular choice). In real life, very few people are completely hand-dominant, either right- or left; it is common to prefer the use of the non-dominant hand for a few tasks, such as writing or sport. In fiction left-handedness is used as a defining characteristic, and is often treated as a slight positive. For left-handedness as a sign of evil see A Sinister Clue . open/close all folders Anime & Manga Diamond no Ace , as a baseball manga, has many lefties among its ranks. Protagonist Sawamura Eijun and major antagonist Narumiya Mei are the two most important examples. However, oddly, there's no real advantage to being a Southpaw in-series aside from the standard "slight advantage against left-handed batters"; of the strongest pitchers, fully half are right-handed, including the Ace of the back-to-back National Champion Komadai Fujimaki High, Hongou Masamune.

Rurouni Kenshin 's Saitou Hajime. Since all Japanese sword techniques are taught strictly right-handed, the switch could be very useful in the context of kenjutsu. Black Cat 's Train Heartnet was born left-handed and became ambidextrous through training, though his left hand is still slightly faster and more accurate when he uses his gun. Notably, he spends the entire Battle on Clarken Island using his left hand alone, partly to show how seriously he is taking the job and his opponents. Mio Akiyama in K-On! plays her bass guitar left-handed, and is also shown to use her left hand for writing. She also tends to be fascinated by by anything meant for left-handed use. The ability to box left-handed is a rare and (sometimes) major advantage in Hajime no Ippo . The ability to switch between southpaw and a conventional stance at will is even better. FLCL : Haruko and, supposedly, Naota's brother are southpaws (a guitar "player" and baseball player respectively), as pointed out in the DVD commentary. Apparently it has something to do with their coolness, according to the director's opinion.

Inverted with Riffael Raffit of Count Cain — his right hand was injured badly enough after his suicide attempt in the hospital that he had to learn to use his left. After it heals, he remains left-handed. When his evil Split Personality regains control over his body, it's right-handed — and when good-Riff starts his Split-Personality Takeover , he shoots himself in the right arm to hamstring evil-Riff. Dragon Ball : Videl is a lefty: she is seen pitching baseballs and writing with her left hand. Nappa is shown performing a number of blasts with his left hand, which he also uses to deflect Gohan's Masenko. He performs a number of other blasts with his right hand however (in particular, his Signature Move , the Volcano Explosion, is always performed with his right hand), so he could be ambidextrous. While Lyrical Nanoha has a few left-handed characters, including the titular character. There are two examples that fit this trope. Alicia being left-handed is the first evidence for Presea to see Alicia's right-handed clone Fate as a failure.

Ginga is not only left-handed, her left hand can even turn into a drill, something that her right-handed younger sister Subaru lacks, giving Ginga an advantage in armory and close-range combat. Yugami-kun ni wa Tomodachi ga Inai has loner protagonist Yugami, the left-handed ace of the school's baseball club. He also writes left-handed. Considering the rest of the cast appears to be right-handed, this serves to further accentuate Yugami's eccentricity and isolation. Inverted with Barret in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children : he suffered a gunshot wound that made his right arm unusable. It's likely he was right-handed before this wound. However, he might have simply gotten used to using his left by this point, as his gun-arm is now capable of assuming the form of a usable hand. Sen Takatsuki from Tokyo Ghoul is left-handed, writing with her left hand during her autograph session. This turns out to be significant later on. Stocking in Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt is shown to be left-handed, in a way making her the Left-Handed Mirror to her (opposite in personality) older sister, Panty.

Graham Aker of Mobile Suit Gundam 00 is also a left-hander, as evident with his Ace Custom units.Clarification Not counting the mass-production Union Flag he used when he first encountered the Exia, all of his suits have their primary weapons held by their left hands. As to the dual-wielding Masurao and Susanowo , the longer blades are always held by the left. Comic Books Hellboy is an inversion. A huge stone hand isn't really useful for doing anything other than punching things, which makes him left-handed out of necessity. Conveniently, Ron Perlman who portrays him in the films is also left-handed. Subverted with Hector Sinestro of Monster Allergy : he has two left hands, but he's not left-handed, something that greatly irritates him. Films — Animation How to Train Your Dragon 's Hiccup is noticeably left-handed, possibly to emphasize his role as a misfit. This is carried over from the original books , where his handedness becomes a plot point. Anika Noni Rose requested that Tiana from The Princess and the Frog be left handed like her.

In many scenes (pouring coffee, stirring something, writing her name in a dream sequence)she uses her left hand but minces with her right hand (well, flipper as she's a frog at this point). Maybe she's ambidextrous. Mulan writes left-handed, but uses a sword right-handed. In Frozen , Elsa shows a preference for ice shooting left-handed. Films — Live-Action Actor Chris Tucker is left handed, as one can tell from the fact that his character James Carter wields his guns left handed in the Rush Hour movies. He also wears a custom-made galco shoulder holder designed for a left-handed draw. Actor Bruce Willis is left handed, thus so is John McClane, the main character in the Die Hard franchise. However, in the movie Sin City , Willis wielded his gun right handed to accurately depict the character of John Hartigan, who was right handed in the original comic books.

And in The Sixth Sense he writes right-handednote It's easlily spotted that he's not naturally right-handed because when he draws a circle, he draws it clockwise, like most left-handed people, instead of the for right-handed people common anti-clockwise., because a close-up of his left hand would have shown he isn't wearing his wedding ring and thus given away a clue to the audience that he's dead. Zigzagged with Rocky ; he was a left-handed boxer, which led (in his backstory) to opponents refusing to face him out of fear that it would mess with their mechanics. He defeats the world champion by learning to fight righty for most of the fight, and then switch to his natural stance and go for the KO. Inverted in The Princess Bride : both the Man in Black and Inigo Montoya fight left-handed in their duel as a way of handicapping themselves to give their opponent more of a fight. Eventually they both drop the act and fight better with their right hand. Inverted in the original Evil Dead films, in which Ash actually loses his right hand. Of course, Sam Raimi probably decided that Ash should lose his right and not his left hand because Bruce Campbell in Real Life is left-handed.

In the film adaptation of Tokill A Mockingbird , Bob Ewell is stated to be left-handed rather than ambidextrous as in the book. This makes the fact that he beat his daughter, Mayella, even more obvious. Due to their actor being left-handed, both Alan Bradley and his Program TRON are left-handed. This seems to make Tron unique among Programs, as no other Programs appear to share that trait. note The TRON: Uprising animators sometimes forgot this, but Beck being right-handed was one of the many giveaways that he wasn't the genuine article Literature A Song of Ice and Fire : Arya Stark. When her dominant hand is revealed to her fencing master, he reacts favorably because fighting left-handed will reverse her stance and movements, which will help confuse her opponents. Of course, her left-handedness might also be A Sinister Clue about her future. Qhorin Halfhand and Jaime Lannister are both inversions; both lost their right hands (Qhorin lost several fingers, Jaime the entire hand) and were forced to learn to fight left-handed. Jaime's struggles to regain his swordsmanship post-amputation take on the flavor of Training from Hell .

Downplayed in Harry Turtledove 's Tales of the Fox series: the main character is left-handed, and he remarks that it makes it easier to get around enemy shields for a couple of reasons. Inverted in the Emberverse novels: Rudi Mackenzie's right arm is wounded and has to learn to use his left arm as his sword arm. When practicing with youths in the Free Republic of Richland they complain that he has an unfair advantage as a southpaw. His mentor responds "Yah hey, if someone attacks you using different moves, or if they're a leftie you're just going to say you're taking your bat and ball and going home 'cause it ain't fair? Christ, Weiss, I've known you were a dumb little punk for years, but do you have to show it off in front of strangers?" Parodied in The Silmarillion : Maedhros learns to wield his sword with his left hand after a Life-or-Limb Decision . He becomes even more deadly afterwards (though this is probably for psychological reasons more than anything physical.) Dhugal in the Deryni novels is noted as left-handed, including fighting left-handed.

The narration in the archery yard scene in The King's Justice recounts the late King Brion's preference for his pages and squires to train right-handed (which Dhugal missed by spending much of his training years at home in Transha). Brion was grudgingly persuaded by Alaric Morgan that fighters should know how to switch off in case of injury (so as not to be left defenseless), but even a couple of years after Brion's death, Dhugal stands out as the only left-handed fighter. Dhugal will have reason to appreciate Morgan's logic in The Quest for Saint Camber when he breaks his left arm when he's swept away in a rainy landslide. Alanna from the Tortall Universe deliberately practices at using her sword left-handed after her right arm is injured during training to become a knight. She keeps up the ambidextrous sword usage even after she's healed, which becomes a Chekhov's Skill in a duel against the Big Bad . Orm, the main character from The Long Ships , is left-handed as a result of rowing a starboard oar on a slave galley for five years.

It is commented upon when he duels, that this makes shieldwork more difficult both for him and the right-handed man he's fighting. Margin Play : The protagonist, Amber Eckert, is a lefty, although that fact is never specifically mentioned. There are plenty of clues though, starting in the very first chapter when she carries a rolled-up newspaper in her left hand as she approaches an Angry Guard Dog . It becomes rather important late in the book. Inverted in The Dark Tower : Due to an unfortunate encounter with "lobstrosities" in The Drawing of the Three, Roland Deschain loses three fingers of his right hand. From that point forward he's strictly a left-handed shooter. The remaining members of his ka-tet inherit the use of his right-hand gun. The Saga of the Sworn Brothers : Thormod, a lefthander and "not a strong man", is able to kill the great warrior Thorgrim Troll with an axe borne in his left hand, and afterwards makes a poem about the deed which specifically mentions it was done left-handed. This suggests Thormod credits success to his left-handedness, because Thorgrim did not expect an attack from a man carrying a weapon in his left hand.

Live-Action TV Liz Lemon in Series/30Rock is left handed. Inverted in Dharma and Greg - Greg's father trained his naturally right-handed son to switch so he'd have an advantage in baseball. When Greg points this can actually be psychologically unhealthy to do to a child, his father seems a little sheepish: "Sorry, son... Won't do it again." In one of their sketches, Horrible Histories outlined some of the the grief that soldiers in the Real Life Georgian-era British Army had to face. One of them was that left-handers were forced to fire their muskets right-handed, since that was the only way to make sure the flash would not blow up in their eyes. The cooking competition Cutthroat Kitchen occasionally implements situational southpaw sabotages, thereby forcing a chef to rely heavily—if not entirely— on his/her weaker hand. These handicaps involve the following: Greatly reduced finger mobility on the dominant hand, either as the result of having to wear bulky oven mitt or having the hand taped closed. Forcing a chef to use his/her weaker hand without any use of the dominant one.

A "Black and White" table which, unlike the hand-swap handicaps, requires the its user to perform the same action with both the left hand and right hand at the same time. During the last season of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , Ezri Dax is left-handed, so in her disorientation as the new host of the Dax symbiote , she was initially thinking she was right-handed like her predecessor Jadzia. Music Left-handed guitarists have been a staple of music since the dawn of string instruments. We have Tony Iommi ( Black Sabbath ), Paul McCartney , Jimi Hendrix , Sylvia Tyson, and Billy Ray Cyrus , for starters . Kurt Cobain , however, played left-handed but could write with the right. Pro Wrestling Carlito 's Red Baron in WWE was "The Southpaw from San Juan", given by Jim Ross , who tends to shout "Right hands!" when matches degenerate into brawls and noticed there was one guy it did not apply to. Video Games Kain and Palom from Final Fantasy IV are left handed. The sequel reveals Golbez is as well. James Anderson in Outlaws is left handed.

The game is a rare example of a First-Person Shooter that features a left handed main character. Sol Badguy in Guilty Gear wields his sword left-handed, in Reverse Grip no less. Naturally, he regularly defeats his right-handed rival Ky Kiske whenever they go at it. The same applies to Ragna the Bloodedge, the protagonist of Guilty Gear's Spiritual Successor BlazBlue , right down to the reverse grip. Devil May Cry has Nero in the fourth game, who is a lefty. Though, that most likely has more to do with the fact that his right hand is a demonic claw, so he's probably a situational southpaw. Probably. The new Dante of the Alternative Continuity is ambidextrous but prefers his left hand. Contrasting classic Dante who was good with both hands, but generally preferred his right hand for Devil Arms and his left for guns. Downplayed with Luke fon Fabre in Tales of the Abyss .

It isn't a major plot point, but it does make for a touching moment at the end of the game, where Cool Old Guy / Colonel Badass Jade offers his own left hand for Luke to shake, despite being right-handed himself, out of respect for the personal growth Luke experiences throughout the game. It's also because, in Japan, shaking ones left hand is considered to be a greater sign of trust since that's the one you hold your shield in. Jade is not only recognising Luke's development, but also indicating that he trusts Luke enough to let his guard down in front of him. Luke is "mirrored" from Asch due to being his replica—his hair sweeps in the opposite direction from Asch's, too, so it's only natural that they have opposite dominant hands. Asch is left handed as well, he just trained himself to use his right hand for everything including eating, writing, and sword play because it let him interact with the world better and gives him the advantage of being ambidextrous. Dunban in Xenoblade is a situational example; he lost the use of his right arm. But still being right-handed or no he kicks ass.

Link from The Legend of Zelda is left-handed in every game without motion controlsnote excepting cases of Ambidextrous Sprite , designers thought it made more sense to have Link's sword appear to be on the right-hand side, but 2D Zelda titles employ the 3/4 View , where the left-right axes are flipped (Link's left is our right and vice versa); non-motion-controlled 3D Link kept the same handedness preference as a Continuity Nod , with the exception of Breath of the Wild . Cia from the Spin-Off Hyrule Warriors does this as well. Raphael from the Soul Series is a left-handed fencer, so that his face and chest can face the screen like the rest of the (right-handed) cast when picked as player one's character. Then again, as the games progress this ventures into A Sinister Clue territory... Knight Artorias from Dark Souls I is implied to be one by the description of his greatsword in the sequel note (and that you gain some of his moveset when the sword is equipped in your left hand.), despite fighting you with his right hand when you encounter him. This is because his left arm was mangled and rendered limp while protecting Sif from the Abyss.

Super Smash Bros. 4 casts Mega Man as a lefty, due to his Ambidextrous Sprite in his source series shooting with his far arm — which, in a left-to-right platform game, was usually his left. Granted, Smash Bros. 4 also uses Ambidextrous Sprites, but in his Final Smash sequence, he summons protagonists from four other Mega Man series for a joint attack, and of them, only MegaMan.EXE shoots with his right arm . In Mario Golf , any character can be lefty by pressing the L button on the character select screen. This is useful if a character has a fade or draw and you want their shots to curve the other way. Fighting Game characters (particularly in 2D games) who fight with their back to the screen can be implied to be fighting southpaw, as typically characters will lead with the hand that correlates to the side of the screen they're on (so on player 1's side, the character will lead with their left hand and player 2 with their right, as long as they face the screen). Examples include Lin from The King of Fighters 2000 and Tusk from Killer Instinct 2.

The Space Marine from Doom uses his left hand for pistols and punching. That said, he uses two-handed guns like a righty would. In Punch-Out!! , Soda Popinski is a lefty, making him a bit harder to read than the other opponents. In Under Night In-Birth , Lady of War Orie wields her sword with her left hand, and so does Yuzuriha, the local Iaijutsu Practitioner , holding the sheath of her sword with her right hand, and drawing with het left hand. In Eternal Fighter Zero , Mai Kawasumi, another Iaijutsu Practitioner , is a lefty: she holds the sheath of her sword with her right hand, so she can use her left hand to draw. Day of the Tentacle - Ned and Jed, identical twins whose only differ lies in their handedness preference.

In order to bypass Nurse Edna, who is guarding the video feed in the present, Hoagie (stuck 200 years in the past) has to switch the two twins while they are making a statue so that said statue flips in the present day, allowing Bernard to push Edna down the stairs without her being able to rely on the statue to right herself. Visual Novels Haruka of Little Busters! is left-handed. It comes up while they're setting her up for the baseball team and they briefly discuss the way she has a small advantage because of it. It wasn't so advantageous when her Big Screwed-Up Family assumed left-handedness was a sign of weakness and beat her for it, though. Kanon : At one point, Yuichi and Ayu bump into each other because the former tells the latter to jump at the side where she holds her chopsticks. Due to her being left-handed, their crash cannot be avoided. Ace Attorney : All of Phoenix Wright's animations in court use his left hand, be if for pointing, rubbing his chin, or touching the back of his head.

In case 1 of the second game, the victim, Dustin Prince, was a lefty, which becomes a plot point when it is pointed out that, even though he appears to have wrote the name of the killer in the sand, he used his right instead of his left. Web Comics Lukas from DNA is left-handed. Western Animation Downplayed with Doug, in Nickelodeon's Doug . It was only occasionally a plot point, such as when his friends couldn't figure out why he was such a poor beet-ball player until they realized they had been trying to make him bat right-handed. It shows up again in another episode where his much-beloved journal goes missing. No one can read it, partly because of his poor handwriting, but also because as a lefty, he drags his hand through everything he writes, leaving it a smudged mess. SpongeBob SquarePants is said to be left-handed in several episodes (in Neptune's Spatula he had two left hands) and in several others he says he's ambidextrous, but he can be seen using his left hand more often than not. In The Simpsons , Bart Simpson is left-handed, as he is based on the show's creator Matt Groening.

Marge Simpson and Ned Flanders share this trait, among others—Marge was afraid of being seen as weird for being left-handed, so she taught herself to use her right hand instead, but eventually admitted that she's been better with her left hand. Finn the Human and Marceline the Vampire Queen from Adventure Time , too. Tina of Bob's Burgers is the only left-handed person in her family. Word of God says Phineas from Phineas and Ferb is left-handed. He appears to be ambidextrous, as he can write and play various instruments with both hands. However, he does seem to lead more with his left hand than his right, as he plays a left-handed drum set, uses left-handed tools, and bats left-handed in baseball. In Rugrats , Chuckie Finster at first was like the other members of the Rugrats gang until one episode established that he was becoming left-handed. And he continued on as this through All Grown Up! , though at the time, it's not so much of a plot point anymore. Trixie is lefty as well , supported by the main show and the second movie.

To contrast with pony Twilight Sparkle who writes with her right hand when turned into a human, the human Twilight Sparkle writes with her left hand. It's subtle, but in Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers , Zachary is often drawn as using his blaster left-handed. It's quite prominent in "Trouble at Texton" where he's shown having to switch his blaster to his left hand to fire. Unfortunately for him, his left side is the one that had to be completely rebuilt with cyberware. In one episode of American Dad! , Francine kicks out Steve's new female friend and study partner. Thinking it was because she was black, Steve and Hayley later find out that their mother has a hatred of left-handed people, and that's why she kicked her out. It turns out that Francine was actually born a lefty, and was beaten by her Stern Nun teacher as a child because of it, and become right-handed as a result, and convinced that left-handed people were evil. After she gets over it, she embraces her left handedness, even though she can no longer write properly with it.

Real Life The British Royal Family have a famously high precedence of left-handedness, but some members were reportedly forced from an early age to present as right-handed in public due to the archaic association of left-handedness with evilness or sin. Amongst those forced to change were Queen Victoria and George VI, with many citing it as a contributing factor to the latter's famous nervousness and stutter. For similar reasons to baseball, left-handed cricketers are very useful both with the bat and with the ball: for example, it is generally a good idea for a batting partnership to consist of a right-hander and a left-hander, to put bowlers off their line and tire the fielders when the batsmen cross. Australian bowler Bill O'Reilly (no, not that one ) hated bowling to left-handers and said they should be drowned at birth. A leg spinner is essentially an off spinner against a left-handed batsman, as the ball spins towards them instead of away. Racket sports, and tennis in particular, often have an advantage attributed to left-handed players. A good tactic in rallies is to hit to the opponent's backhand as it is (usually) weaker than the forehand.

Of course, a left hander's backhand side is the opposite to a right hander's. Add this to the fact that rallies usually involve more cross court shots than down-the-line, and you can easily end up stuck in a situation where you are playing from the backhand straight into the opponent's forehand every time. Plus, when receiving serve the spin of a left hander's serve goes in the opposite direction to a right hander's, often making for some unpredictable and hard to return serves. Averted in golf, though. Since golf is (if you'll excuse the terms) Player Versus Environment rather than Player Versus Player , and the slopes of most golf courses are designed for right-handers, there are relatively few left-handed golfers at the highest level (although Phil Mickelson and Mike Weir are two relatively recent left-handed major winners). Left-handed auto racers in left-hand-drive cars benefit greatly from keeping their dominant hand on the wheel while shifting gears. Averted by the more modern Formula One steering-wheel controls which use the left hand to shift down and the right hand to shift up without ever letting go of the wheel. Left-handed drivers in right-hand-drive cars can shift gears effectively if learned correctly.

Since the steering wheel and the driver seat are on the right side, and the Driving Stick (or any other type of transmissions) is on the left side of the driver's seat, it requires a left hand to shift the gears, thus southpaw drivers could learn it more effectively compared to righties. In late antiquity/early medieval warfare, a common trick (the Saxons and maybe the Normans made good use of this) was to fight as though left handed, thus minimizing the enemies' shields and throwing them off. Left-handed bowlers can be seen as having a significant advantage over right-handed bowlers. Since most bowlers bowl right-handed, they're all throwing their ball along roughly the same path as each other, which can throw off the oil pattern significantly. Left-handed bowlers generally have fresh oil, since few people bowl along the left side of the lane, and are thus able to get a much more consistent shot.

Having a fresh oil track on the lane is a very good thing, as it allows the ball to travel faster, and with more spin, meaning that the pins can be stuck harder, and allowing for greater control of the curve, which is essential in getting a strike, since the best way to get a strike is to hit the pins behind the first pin, with the ball curving slightly to the center of the cluster, so that the pins hit each other in a mushrooming pattern. One defense used in medieval castles was to make spiral staircases twist clockwise as they went up so that a right handed defender's body was shielded by the center wall. This made left handed troops a valuable resource when trying to storm such castles. In fact, two Scottish castles (Eilean Donan and Ferniherst) have anti-clockwise staircases for the advantage of left-handed defenders. Swordplay. In general you are encouraged to fight from your good side for the obvious advantages in free fights (but also because it is a pain to fight from your weak side - or to re-train your good side when you started learning on the wrong side).

Once you get used to how to attack a right handed opponent on his left (vulnerable) shoulder when your opening position has the sword on your left shoulder it is no big deal anymore. (However most lefties also learn to do at least the basic moves also from the right side. Which is of high advantage when your opponent finally got used to you being a leftie and adjusts his attacks so you can attack him from the right. The other main advantage in general is that due to most people being right-handed, both lefties and righties primarily train to fight against righties. Matt Easton of Schola Gladiatoria , who is right handed, actually turns this to his advantage in this video . This trope also applies to fencing; lefties are MUCH harder to hit if you're used to fighting righties due to the fact that you have to hit the opposite side of their body. In academic fencing , normally only one side of the face is a legal hit zone. In the rare cases of left-right matchups, both sides are exposed which greatly increases the risk of getting hit for the right-handed fencer, since he is often not trained against southpaws. There exists a beer company in Colorado named " Left Hand ". They produce sinister brews.

The United States Marines have found that shooting a bolt action rifle southpaw allows a sniper to shoot slightly faster; the bolt on the M40A3 is on the right, meaning that a right-handed shooter would have to remove his hand from the grip and trigger, work the bolt, and return to firing position. A left-handed shooter can keep his eye on target and his left hand by the trigger and work the bolt with his right hand (especially since for long-range shooting, you're not going to be supporting the rifle with just your off-hand); as the firing hand does not leave the trigger, the interval between firing is reduced. Tied Up on the Phone : One of the inevitable results of old-style telephone receivers, where the handset was permanently attached to the receiver by a coiled cord, was how quickly the connecting cord ceased to be a neatly organised smooth coil. It would inevitably tangle, snag, knot, loop back on itself, and tended to somehow double over on itself, until the connecting wire between handset and receiver was effectively half its original length. Anyone picking up the handset to such a phone would drag the whole thing up off its table and find it swinging in the air.

Left-handed users soon found that the arrangement favoured right-handed people - both in the direction of coiling, and in the way the headset was meant to be returned to its rest with the connecting wire on the right-hand side. Any old-style phone regularly used by left-handed people would unravel its coils twice as fast (the natural tendency being for a left-hander to return the handset to the rest with the coil-connected end on the left.) Any household with both left and right handed people would discover their shared phone suffered from Garden Hose Syndrome - it became an utter tangled mess very quickly.

Question: What term is applied to a left-handed boxer?
Answer: Southpaw