The History of Slippers

In summer, flip-flops are the protagonists, which are enthusiasm, freedom, casualness and comfort. This season, every cell in your feet is calling: I need a pair of flip flops!

Flip-flops are ubiquitous in our lives, but in fact, flip-flops have a very long history. As early as 4000 BC in ancient Egypt, people had already started wearing them. The early flip-flop sandals of ancient Egypt were mainly made of papyrus and palm leaves. Only nobles and pharaohs would have gold, joined by leather straps or decorated with intricately carved shapes. The ancient Greeks and Romans also wore flip flops.

It is also said that flip-flops originated from Chinese clogs. However, clogs are made of wood with high heels, and are generally used for walking in rainy days. Their shape and function are not quite the same as slippers. Clogs have almost disappeared in China, but in Japan, since clogs were introduced, they have been preserved as one of the traditional costumes of the Yamato people until today, so many people think that clogs have always been unique to Japan.

The Japanese-style footwear in our general impression, which is what we often call clogs, is actually called "下駄 (げた)", which is a shape of solid wood with teeth. The "grass shoe (ぞうり)" is a flat bottom without teeth. It has been popular among the people since the Kamakura period, and it is mostly made of straw and bamboo. But there is another "雪駄 (せった)" which is easy to be confused with zori shoes. It is actually evolved from zori shoes (it is said to be invented by tea ceremony master Sen Rikyu). The outer layer is mostly made of leather, and the heel has more inside. Metal wrapped for increased wear resistance.

The now popular rubber slippers are born

According to Philippine historical records, the Japanese came to this island country as early as the 15th century, before the Spaniards discovered the Philippines. In 1600, there were as many as 3,000 Japanese in Manila alone. Through commercial and trade activities, the Japanese subsequently established settlements in Ilocos, Davao and Central Visayas.

The pinch shoes (Zori) worn by Japanese businessmen at that time naturally became the predecessor of slippers. Depending on the weather, they would choose different Zori for travel. Zori, which is commonly worn in summer, is woven from straw. After it became popular in the Philippines, it was made by local people using Manila hemp or abaca fiber. And another kind of Zori with wooden soles, which we all know as clogs, is a must-have shoe for rainy days.

In the 1940s, Japan expanded its territory in Southeast Asia, and the Philippines changed hands again, becoming Japan's source of industrial raw materials in Southeast Asia. One of the most important military raw materials is rubber.

In 1945, Japan was defeated and surrendered, leaving a lot of useless rubber in Japan. At that time, rubber was only used in industrial and military fields. Facing the piles of rubber, Japanese businessmen came up with an ingenious solution, which was to make rubber slippers.

Japan's minimalism is perfectly reflected in the design of rubber slippers. The minimalist design naturally brings about extremely low cost and selling price. In 1950, almost every American family owned a pair of rubber slippers. This kind of rubber slippers was called "Flip-Flops" because of the sound it made when walking. Flip flops.

Let’s go back to the post-World War II period. Although there is still a vague sense of hostility between the United States and Japan, the rubber slippers from Japan named “Zori” (that is, the Roman spelling of “ぞうり”) are in the United States. It is very popular in grocery stores. After the war, Japan's rubber industry was particularly developed. It is reasonable for designers to try to incorporate rubber elements into traditional shoes. In the 1950s, the Hiroshima Rubber Company used rubber as raw material to produce these slippers, which were deliberately oversized to fit Western feet for export.

Unexpectedly, this kind of flip-flops became very popular in the United States for a while, and began to appear on beaches everywhere. Without a pair of the most popular flip-flops, no matter how attractive the three-point flip-flops are, it would be useless. "All of us well-dressed people wear these slippers on our summer vacations at Lake Tahoe." Writer Frank Johnson said so reservedly and politely in the 1960s, "even a coolie with a little brain would not bother to step on them." Go down to the paddy fields with this big piece of floppy rubber, and we walk around in it."

It was in the 1960s that the name of flip-flops finally changed from the Roman phonetic spelling of "Zori" to the serious English-"Flip-Flop", and the reason for this English name turned out to be... walking The sound of rubber hitting the soles of the feet. Flip-flops not only occupy people's vacation time, but also follow them even when they go to heaven and earth. For example, if you look at what the crew of Prometheus wore in the cabin, it's obvious: there's nothing a flip-flop can't do.

Welcome to buy more styles of slippers!