The term southpaw can be traced back to the 1880s when Chicago Daily News sports reporter Finley Peter Dunne coined the term when covering the then-named Chicago White Stockings games. Dunne was known for giving colorful play-by-play and when a left-handed pitcher came on the field, he described him as a southpaw..
First Generation (1993-1997) The name Altima originally referred to a trim line of the Nissan Laurel mid-size car sold in Central America and the Caribbean before 1992. In 1993, Nissan discontinued the Stanza line, replacing it with the U.S.-made Altima. The very first Altima rolled off the assembly line in Smyrna, Tenn., in June 1992, as a 1993 model. All Altimas were built in Smyrna until June 2004, when Nissan's Canton, Miss., plant began producing additional Altimas to meet high demand.
The Nissan Altima is made by Nissan Motor Company, which is headquartered in Japan. The Nissan Altima, however, is manufactured at two U.S. assembly plants located in Canton, Mississippi, and Smyrna, Tennessee. Check out our U.S. News Best Price Program for great savings at your local Nissan dealer. You can also find excellent manufacturer incentives on our Nissan deals page.