![Stride rite sneakers 10101](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Stride_rite_sneakers_10101.jpeg)
Sneakers (also called trainers, athletic shoes,
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
shoes, gym shoes, kicks, sport shoes, flats, running shoes, or runners) are
shoe
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. They are often worn with a sock. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration and fashion. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture t ...
s primarily designed for
sport
Sport pertains to any form of Competition, competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and Skill, skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to specta ...
s or other forms of
physical exercise
Exercise is a body activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness.
It is performed for various reasons, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardiovascular system, hone athletic ...
, but which are now also widely used for everyday
casual wear
Casual wear (or casual attire or clothing) is a Western dress code that is relaxed, occasional, spontaneous and suited for everyday use. Casual wear became popular in the Western world following the counterculture of the 1960s. When emphasisi ...
.
Since their popularization by companies such as
Converse
Converse may refer to:
Mathematics and logic
* Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement
** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication
** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...
,
Nike
Nike often refers to:
* Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory
* Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment
Nike may also refer to:
People
* Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...
and
Spalding in the mid 20th century, they have become attire, with variety growing in many global markets exponentially. Like other parts of the global clothing industry, manufacture of shoes is heavily concentrated in Asia with nine in ten shoes produced in that region.
Contemporary sneakers are largely made from synthetic materials, and the materials and manufacturing process produce, on average, about of
CO2 emissions.
Some companies are trying to substitute more sustainable materials in their manufacture.
About 90% of shoes end up in landfills at end of life.
Names and etymology
![Reebok Royal Glide Ripple Clip shoe](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Reebok_Royal_Glide_Ripple_Clip_shoe.jpg)
The shoes have gone by a variety of names, depending on geography and changing over the decades. The term "sneakers" is most commonly used in
Northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...
,
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and
South Florida
South Florida is the southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the other two are Central Florida and North Florida. South Florida is the southernmost part of th ...
,AustraliaNew Zealand, and parts of Canada. However, in
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal Au ...
,
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
, and
Scottish English
Scottish English ( gd, Beurla Albannach) is the set of varieties of the English language spoken in Scotland. The transregional, standardised variety is called Scottish Standard English or Standard Scottish English (SSE). Scottish Standard ...
, running shoes and runners are synonymous terms used to refer to sneakers; with the latter term also used in
Hiberno-English
Hiberno-English (from Latin ''Hibernia'': "Ireland"), and in ga, Béarla na hÉireann. or Irish English, also formerly Anglo-Irish, is the set of English dialects native to the island of Ireland (including both the Republic of Ireland a ...
. Tennis shoes is another term used in Australian, and
North American English
North American English (NAmE, NAE) is the most generalized variety of the English language as spoken in the United States and Canada. Because of their related histories and cultures, plus the similarities between the pronunciations (accents), v ...
.
The
British English
British English (BrE, en-GB, or BE) is, according to Lexico, Oxford Dictionaries, "English language, English as used in Great Britain, as distinct from that used elsewhere". More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in ...
equivalent of ''sneaker'' in its modern form is divided into two separate types - predominantly outdoor and fashionable trainers, training shoes or quality 'basketball shoes' and in contrast cheap rubber-soled, low cut and canvas-topped 'plimsolls'. In
Geordie English
Geordie () is a nickname for a person from the Tyneside area of North East England, and the dialect used by its inhabitants, also known in linguistics as Tyneside English or Newcastle English. There are different definitions of what constitut ...
, sneakers may also be called sandshoes, gym boots, or joggers; while plimsolls may be referred to as daps in
Welsh English
Welsh English ( cy, Saesneg Gymreig) comprises the dialects of English spoken by Welsh people. The dialects are significantly influenced by Welsh grammar and often include words derived from Welsh. In addition to the distinctive words and gr ...
.
Several terms for sneakers exist in South Africa, including gym shoes, tennies, sports shoes, sneaks, and takkies. Other names for sneakers includes rubber shoes in
Philippine English
Philippine English (similar and related to American English) is any variety of English native to the Philippines, including those used by the media and the vast majority of educated Filipinos and English learners in the Philippines from adjac ...
, track shoes in
Singapore English
Singapore English (SgE, SE, en-SG) (similar and related to British English) is the set of varieties of the English language native to Singapore. In Singapore, English is spoken in two main forms: Singaporean Standard English (indistinguisha ...
, canvas shoes in
Nigerian English
Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...
, Camboo in Ghana English meaning Camp boot and sportex in Greece.
Plimsolls
A pump or plimsoll (British English; see #Outside the United Kingdom, other names below) is a type of athletic shoe with a canvas upper and rubber Shoe#Shoe construction, sole developed initially as beachwear.
Pumps have solid rubber soles about ...
(British English) are "low-tech" athletic shoes and are also called "sneakers" in
American English
American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the Languages of the United States, most widely spoken lan ...
. The word "sneaker" is often attributed to American Henry Nelson McKinney, who was an advertising agent for
N. W. Ayer & Son. In 1917, he used the term because the rubber sole made the shoe's wearer stealthy. The word was already in use at least as early as 1887, when the
''Boston Journal'' made reference to "sneakers" as "the name boys give to tennis shoes." The name "sneakers" originally referred to how quiet the rubber soles were on the ground, in contrast to noisy standard hard leather sole
dress shoes
A dress shoe (U.S. English) is a shoe to be worn at smart casual or more formal events. A dress shoe is typically contrasted to an athletic shoe.
Dress shoes are worn by many as their standard daily shoes, and are widely used in dance, for part ...
. Someone wearing sneakers could "sneak up", while someone wearing standards could not.
Earlier, the name "sneaks" had been used by prison inmates to refer to warders because of the rubber-soled shoes they wore.
History
These shoes acquired the nickname 'plimsoll' in the 1870s, derived according to Nicholette Jones' book ''The Plimsoll Sensation'', from the colored horizontal band joining the upper to the sole, which resembled the
Plimsoll line
The waterline is the line where the hull of a ship meets the surface of the water. Specifically, it is also the name of a special marking, also known as an international load line, Plimsoll line and water line (positioned amidships), that indi ...
on a ship's hull. Alternatively, just like the Plimsoll line on a ship, if water got above the line of the rubber sole, the wearer would get wet.
Plimsolls were widely worn by vacationers and also began to be worn by sportsmen on the
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
and
croquet
Croquet ( or ; french: croquet) is a sport that involves hitting wooden or plastic balls with a mallet through hoops (often called "wickets" in the United States) embedded in a grass playing court.
Its international governing body is the Wor ...
courts for their comfort. Special soles with engraved patterns to increase the surface grip of the shoe were developed, and these were ordered in bulk for the use of the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
. Athletic shoes were increasingly used for leisure and outdoor activities at the turn of the 20th century - plimsolls were even found with the ill-fated
Scott Antarctic expedition of 1911. Plimsolls were commonly worn by pupils in schools'
physical education
Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorati ...
lessons in the UK from the 1950s until the early 1970s.
British company
J.W. Foster and Sons designed and produced the first shoes designed for running in 1895; the shoes were spiked to allow for greater traction and speed. The company sold its high-quality handmade running shoes to athletes around the world, eventually receiving a contract for the manufacture of running shoes for
the British team in the 1924 Summer Olympics.
Harold Abrahams
Harold Maurice Abrahams (15 December 1899 – 14 January 1978) was an English track and field athlete. He was Olympic champion in 1924 in the 100 metres sprint, a feat depicted in the 1981 film '' Chariots of Fire''.
Biography
Early life
...
and
Eric Liddell
Eric Henry Liddell (; 16 January 1902 – 21 February 1945) was a Scottish sprinter, rugby player and Christian missionary. Born in Qing China to Scottish missionary parents, he attended boarding school near London, spending time when p ...
won the
100 m and
400 m
The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is o ...
events, kitted out with Foster's running gear.
This style of footwear also became prominent in America at the turn of the 20th century, where they were called 'sneakers'. In 1892, the
U.S. Rubber
The company formerly known as the United States Rubber Company, now Uniroyal, is an American manufacturer of tires and other synthetic rubber-related products, as well as variety of items for military use, such as ammunition, explosives, chemical ...
Company introduced the first rubber-soled shoes in the country, sparking a surge in demand and production. The first basketball shoes were designed by
Spalding as early as 1907. The market for sneakers grew after
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, when sports and athletics increasingly became a way to demonstrate moral fiber and
patriotism
Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...
. The U.S. market for sneakers grew steadily as young boys lined up to buy sneakers endorsed by
football player
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
Jim Thorpe
James Francis Thorpe ( Sac and Fox (Sauk): ''Wa-Tho-Huk'', translated as "Bright Path"; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete and Olympic gold medalist. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was the first Native ...
and
Converse All Stars endorsed by
basketball player
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
Chuck Taylor.
During the
interwar period
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...
, athletic shoes began to be marketed for different sports, and differentiated designs were made available for men. Athletic shoes were used by competing athletes at the
Olympics
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
, helping to popularise athletic shoes among the general public. In 1936, a French brand, Spring Court, marketed the first canvas tennis shoe featuring signature eight ventilation channels on a vulcanised natural rubber sole.
Adolf "Adi" Dassler began producing his own sports shoes in his mother's wash kitchen in
Herzogenaurach
Herzogenaurach (; vmf, Herziaura) is a town in the district of Erlangen-Höchstadt, in Bavaria, Germany. It is best known for being the home of the major international sporting goods companies Adidas and Puma, as well as the large car parts m ...
,
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
, after his return from
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, and went on to establish one of the leading athletic shoe manufacturers,
Adidas
Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...
.
He also successfully marketed his shoes to athletes at the
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...
, which helped cement his good reputation. Business boomed and the Dasslers were selling 200,000 pairs of shoes each year before World War II.
Post-War
![Shoes and Fruit (p365 20)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Shoes_and_Fruit_%28p365_20%29.jpg)
During the 1950s, leisure opportunities greatly expanded, and children and adolescents began to wear sneakers as
school dress codes
A school uniform is a uniform worn by students primarily for a school or otherwise an educational institution.They are common in primary and secondary schools in various countries.
An example of a uniform would be requiring button-down sh ...
relaxed. Sneaker sales rose so high, they began to adversely affect the sales of conventional
leather
Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...
shoes, leading to a fierce advertising war for market share in the late '50s. In the 1970s,
jogging
Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...
for exercise became increasingly popular, and trainers designed specifically for comfort while jogging sold well. Companies also started to target some of their products at the casual fashion market. Soon, shoes were available for football, jogging, basketball,
running
Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...
, etc. Many sports had their relevant shoe, made possible by podiatrist development of athletic shoe technology.
During the 1990s, shoe companies perfected their fashion and marketing skills. Sports endorsements with famous athletes grew larger, and marketing budgets went through the roof. Sneakers became a fashion statement and were marketed as a definition of identity and personality rather than simply athletic aids.
Also during the 1990s, various vendors began producing "walking shoes" for adults using the construction technology of sneakers but visually resembling traditional leather shoes. The combination of a traditional look with increased comfort rapidly achieved wide popularity and by 2010 was displacing sales of leather shoes for adults in a parallel with the post-1950 success of sneakers among children. The shift was especially noticeable in combination with
business-casual clothing.
From 1970 (five models), to 1998 (285 models), to 2012 (3,371), the number of sport shoe models in the U.S. has grown exponentially.
[Aichner, T. and Coletti, P. 2013. "Customers' online shopping preferences in mass customization". ''Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice'', 15(1): 20-35.]
Use in sports
![EVD-tenis-050](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/EVD-tenis-050.jpg)
The term 'athletic shoes' is typically used for shoes utilized for
jogging
Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...
or road running and indoor sports such as
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
, but tends to exclude shoes for sports played on grass such as
association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
and
rugby football
Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league.
Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...
, which are generally known in North America as "
cleats
Cleat may refer to:
* Cleat (nautical), a fitting on ships, boats, and docks to which ropes are tied
* Cleat, Orkney, a place in Scotland
* Cleat (shoe), a type or part of a shoe
* ''Cleats'' (comic strip), a comic strip by Bill Hinds
* Grouser ...
" and in British English as "boots" or "studs".
Attributes of an athletic shoe include a flexible sole, appropriate tread for the function, and ability to absorb impact. As the industry and designs have expanded, the term "athletic shoes" is based more on the design of the bottom of the shoe than the aesthetics of the top of the shoe. Today's designs include sandals,
Mary Janes
Mary Jane (also known as bar shoes or doll shoes) is an American term ( formerly a registered trademark) for a closed, low-cut shoe with one or more straps across the instep.
Classic Mary Janes for children are typically made of black leather ...
, and even elevated styles suitable for running, dancing, and jumping.
The shoes themselves are made of flexible compounds, typically featuring a sole made of dense rubber. While the original design was basic, manufacturers have since tailored athletic shoes for their specific purposes. An example of this is the
spiked shoe developed for track running. Some of these shoes are made up to unusually large sizes for athletes with large feet.
Running shoes
Running shoes come in a range of shapes suited to different running styles/abilities. Generally, they are divided by running style: the majority are for heel-toe joggers/runners which are further subdivided into '
neutral
Neutral or neutrality may refer to:
Mathematics and natural science Biology
* Neutral organisms, in ecology, those that obey the unified neutral theory of biodiversity
Chemistry and physics
* Neutralization (chemistry), a chemical reaction in ...
', '
overpronation' and '
underpronation'. However, most evidence-based comparisons show no reduction in lower-limb running injuries from prescribing different types of shoe for different foot types.
[.] The shoes are constructed with a complex structure of "rubber" with plastic/metal stiffeners to restrict foot movement. More advanced runners tend to wear
flatter and flexible shoes, which allow them to run more quickly with greater comfort.
According to the
NPD Group
The NPD Group, Inc. (NPD; formerly National Purchase Diary Panel Inc. and NPD Research Inc.) is an American market research company founded on September 28, 1966, and based in Port Washington, New York. In 2017, NPD ranked as the 8th largest mar ...
, one in four pairs of running shoes that were sold in the United States in 2016 were bought from an
online retailer
Online shopping is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser or a mobile app. Consumers find a product of interest by visiting the website of the r ...
.
Notable brands
, brands with global popularity include:
Types and number of models
*
High-top
The high-top is a shoe that extends slightly over the wearer's ankle. It is commonly an athletic shoe, particularly for basketball. It is sometimes confused with the slightly shorter mid-top, which typically extends no higher than the wearer's a ...
s cover the ankle.
* Low-tops or oxfords do not cover the ankle.
* Mid-cut sneakers are in-between high-tops and low-tops.
* Sneaker boots extend to the calf.
* Slip-ons like low-tops/oxfords do not cover the ankle and do not have laces.
* Low-top CVO (Circular Vamp Oxford) like low-tops do not cover the ankle but unlike low-tops have a
in a circular form and typically four to five eyelets.
* High-top CVO (Circular Vamp Oxford) like high-tops cover the ankle and also have a circular vamp.
Culture
![DIG E 2015](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/DIG_E_2015._Brooklyn_Museum.The_Rise_of_Sneaker_Culture.jpg)
Sneakers have been an important part of
hip hop (primarily Pumas, Nike, and Adidas) and
rock 'n roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...
(Converse, Vans) cultures since the 1970s. Hip hop artists sign million dollar deals with major brands such as Nike, Adidas, or Puma to promote their shoes. Sneaker collectors, called "
sneakerhead
Sneaker collecting is the acquisition and trading of sneakers as a hobby. It is often manifested by the use and collection of shoes made for particular sports, particularly basketball and skateboarding. A person involved in sneaker collecting is ...
s", regard sneakers as fashionable items. Sneaker companies encourage this trend by producing rare sneakers in limited numbers, often at very high retail prices. Artistically-modified sneakers can sell for upwards of $1000 at exclusive establishments like Saks Fifth Avenue. In 2005, a documentary, ''
Just for Kicks'', about the sneaker phenomenon and history was released.
[History of Sneakers http://theidleman.com/history-of-sneakers]
See also
*
Biodegradable athletic footwear Biodegradable athletic footwear is athletic footwear that uses biodegradable materials with the ability to compost at the end-of-life phase. Such materials include natural biodegradable polymers, synthetic biodegradable polymers, and biodegrad ...
*
Comparison of orthotics
Comparison of orthotics stem from podiatrists having molded custom orthotics to address patients' foot malformations. Over the years they have developed numerous means to create the basis for their molds, plaster casts, foam box impressions, or thr ...
*
List of shoe styles
This is a list of shoe styles and designs. A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot while doing various activities. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration. The design of shoes has varied enormously throu ...
References
External links
The Shoe in Sport
*
{{Authority control
20th-century fashion
21st-century fashion
Athletic shoes
Footwear
History of clothing (Western fashion)
History of fashion
Shoes
pt:Tênis (vestuário)