Figure 1.--Here is a photograph of Japanese children wearing zori. The picture were taken in after World War II in the late 1940s. The image shows rural mountain children. |
Traditional footwear in Japan was the zori sandal. I thought they were a centuries old style, but Webster's indicate the term first appeared at the turn of the 20th century. Apparently the term zauri was used rarlier. I'm not sure if there was any difference between the zaur and zori sandal. Zori sandals were made from straw with a flat sole. They were held on the foot by a thong worn between the big and second toe. They also were made in rubber, but I'm unsure when the first rubber zori appeared. The zori sandal appears to have been the inspiration to the modern flip-flop.
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