Veldskoen

Veldskoen or "Vellies" made by Bata Shoes, 2015

Veldskoen (or vellie, colloquial, veldskoene plural, alternately velskoens or velskoene plural; pronounced "FELL-skoons") are Southern African walking shoes made from vegetable-tanned leather or soft rawhide uppers attached to a leather footbed and rubber sole without tacks or nails.

The name comes from Afrikaans vel ("skin") (later assimilated to veld ("field")) and skoen ("shoe"). They were first made by the Dutch East India Co. in the 17th century by the first Dutch settlers in South Africa. Their design is believed to be based on the traditional Khoisan footwear observed by these settlers. The footwear was later embedded into the Afrikaans psyche when the velskoen was used as the footwear of the Great Trek. Easy to make, lightweight and extremely tough, the vellie could withstand the harsh conditions of the great migration north. The vellie has become part of South African, Zimbabwean (previously Rhodesian) and Namibian society, worn by all classes and professions but favoured by farmers and safari guides. Nathan Clark's company, C&J Clark, made the desert boot famous but Clark's design is modeled after the same round toe and style last used to manufacture velskoen. Clark was inspired by the shape and design of the velskoen he discovered for sale in the bazars of Cairo, which were imported to Egypt from South Africa.

They are sometimes considered light boots, and can essentially be considered a subset of chukka boots or desert boots although vellies tend to have a lower topline.^[1] Veldskoen soles are sometimes cut from old car tyres rather than crepe rubber.

Veldskoene saw considerable use by the Rhodesian Army during the Rhodesian Bush War as tough light-weight boot. Vellies along with canvas "Takkies" were also favourites of the Selous Scouts as the creped sole made going untracked easier than the heavy lugs normally found on infantry boots.

References

↑ Herbert Schier Velskoen Desert Boots (archived copy) - Brothere Vellies

Footwear

Men's dress shoes	Blucher Brogues Brothel creepers Derby Monks Oxfords Slip-ons (Loafers) Spectator shoes (Co-respondent shoes) Venetian-style shoes Winklepickers Wholecuts

Women's dress shoes	Ballet flats Court shoes High-heeled footwear Mary Janes Mojari Mules Peep-toe shoes Saddle shoes Slingbacks Slip-ons (Loafers) Venetian-style shoes Winklepickers

Other shoes	Driving moccasins Flip-flops Galoshes Platform shoes Sandals Slides Slippers Veldskoens

Wooden footwear	Bakya British clogs Cantabrian albarcas Clogs Getas Klompen Namaksin Padukas Pattens Sabot Träskor

Military footwear	Ammunition boots Bunny boots Combat boots Jackboots Jump boots Jungle boots Ranger boots Tanker boots Trench boots

Sport-related footwear	Athletic shoes Ballet shoes Boat shoes Climbing shoes Cross country running shoes Cycling shoes Football boots Hiking boots Ice skates Inline skates Jika-tabi Kung fu shoe Minimalist shoes Motorcycle boots Mountaineering boots Racing flats Riding boots Roller shoes Roller skates Safari boots Skate shoes Ski boots Swimfins Water shoes Wrestling shoes

Fashion boots	Chelsea boots (Beatle boots) Chukka boots Go-go boots Knee-high boots Over-the-knee boots Platform boots Thigh-high boots Ugg boots

Work boots	Australian work boots Cowboy boots Engineer boots Hip boots Rigger boots Steel-toe boots Waders

Other boots	Jodhpur boots Wellington boots

Traditional footwear	Abacas Abarkas Avarcas Balghas Bast shoes Clogs Espadrilles Galesh Giveh Haferlschuh Hnyat-phanats Huarache (shoe) Hwas Jorabs Moccasins Mojaris Mukluks Opanaks Peshawari chappals Snowshoes Valenkis Warajis Kolhapuri chappals

Historical footwear	Areni-1 shoes Buskins Caligae Chopines Crakow (Poulaine) Hessians Pampooties Sabatons

Shoe construction	Bespoke shoes Blake construction Goodyear welt

Lists	List of shoe styles

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, October 08, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.