South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east.

The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each separated by 90 degrees, and secondarily divided by four ordinal (intercardinal) directions—northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest—each located halfway between two cardinal directions. Some disciplines such as meteorology and navigation further divide the compass with additional azimuths. Within European tradition, a fully defined compass has 32 "points".