Fun Shoe Facts

We all know the importance of finding and wearing a shoe that fits properly. Some good tips to follow are to fit the larger foot, go shoe shopping at the end of the day when feet are their biggest, get sized by a professional, and make sure there is enough room for your toes to move around. Shoes have come a long way over the years. The first shoes were made from animal skins, leather cords, leaves, rawhide, wood, etc. Here are a few fun historical foot facts.

Where did the term “two left feet” come from? Up until the 17^th Century, there was no distinction between shoes made for the left or right foot.

During the 16^th Century, women began to wear such high heeled shoes, that a law was enforced limiting the size of the heels on shoes because of the danger they posed.

Shoes used to be an indicator of class.

In Ancient Egypt, slaves did not wear shoes, commoners wore sandals, and those in higher society wore pointed sandals.

Sneakers were invented in 1917. They were named sneakers by an advertising agency since the rubber soles made the shoes “sneaky”.

Image by YellowBecky. Shoes. (2012). Flickr.