A scientific and anthropological look at the evolution of high-heeled shoes

At the turn of the 17th century, new trade and political relations with Iran encouraged the men of northern Europe to add heels to their shoes.

Ghazal Ziari- In the modern world, high-heeled shoes are a symbol of femininity. These shoes are designed in such a way that not only make the legs appear longer and the toes smaller, but also change the way a person stands and walks in a way that gives a more classic and attractive shape to the body.

But constant wearing of high-heeled shoes has brought heavy physical costs to women. According to the American Orthopedic Association's 2022 survey, 71% of women who wear high heels (half of the women surveyed) reported that these shoes caused them pain and discomfort. Meanwhile, a study conducted in Thailand in 2012 showed that wearing shoes with heels higher than five centimeters was associated with a 60% increased likelihood of developing repetitive stress injuries and chronic strains.

Of course, this process is normal; Because high heels were never made for walking, and you may not know that for most of history, high heels have been the first fashion choice among men.

High heels were first invented in Western Asia for equestrians, according to Elizabeth Semelhac, director and chief curator of the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto. The raised heel of these shoes acted as a physical barrier to prevent the foot from sliding too much inside the horse's stirrup.

Samelhak explained about this: "I have found evidence of the use of high-heeled shoes in horse riding until the 10th century AD in Iran; But I think they probably date back a long time before that." Until the 17th century, high heels were only used in the equestrian world and by men, until they made their way into the realm of fashion in the Western world.

Ms. Semelhak continued, "At the turn of the 17th century, the new trade and political relations with Iran encouraged the men of northern Europe to add heels to their riding shoes."

In the following decades, when a trend developed to incorporate elements of menswear into womenswear, high heels crossed the gender boundary of clothing. Of course, at that time, the heel style of shoes worn by men and women was different. "The heels of men's stilettos were long but thick and cube-shaped, but the heels of women's shoes were much taller and narrower," explained Semelhac. The reason was the way the heels were used. In the world of women's fashion, these shoes were used to make women's legs appear smaller and more delicate. An aesthetic ideal whose foot was hidden under the skirt and only saw the delicate tips of the shoes.

By the end of the 18th century, except for a limited number of examples seen in horse shoes, high heels fell out of men's fashion, and after that these shoes were exclusively used by women.

Challenging the high-heeled tyranny

According to Semelhac, by the 20th century, high heels were so entwined with the concept of femininity and sexual desirability that the term "reasonable and reasonable shoes" i.e. flat shoes without heels, was used ironically to describe isolated and unattractive women.

But in the late 1940s and 1950s, a new aesthetic entered the world of women's shoe design, and flat ballerina shoes became popular as part of the style of innocent and young girls, and this trend continued in the 1960s. During that period, high heels were considered too adult for girls' styles.

Semelhak pointed out that the ups and downs of high heels and flats continued until the 21st century; Until the 1970s, an interesting phenomenon occurred: high-heeled shoes once again entered the world of men's fashion, the most obvious example of which was the popular platform shoes in disco music.

Although today, the heel is still a fixed part of some men's shoes, such as cowboy boots or motorcycle boots, but they always have a cubic form and resemble European men's heels in the 17th century, which, according to Semmelhak, can be considered men's high-heeled shoes.

But shoes with high, narrow and stiletto heels still remain as a symbol of femininity; However, modern designers have recently challenged it with their transition to men's designs, including the collaboration of the Jimmy Choo brand and Billy Porter, an actor and social activist, in 2021.

Of course, the new trend in women's fashion, in turn, has transformed the traditional gender norms, and since the 2010s, linens have transformed the concept of the attractiveness of street clothes attributed to men into an all-encompassing and universal ideal.