Stiletto heel Andre Perugia, who began designing shoes in 1906. It seems unlikely that he invented the stiletto, but he is probably the first firmly-documented designer of the high, slim heel. The word stiletto applied to a heel is derived from a knife or dagger stiletto, which is a long, thin blade, to which the heel of the shoe is similar in profile. Its usage in footwear first appeared in print in the "New Statesman" magazine in 1959: "She came ...forward, her walk made lopsided by the absence of one heel of the stilettos". High-heel shoes were worn by men and women
High heel policy advent of the stiletto heel fashion." When stiletto heels were first sold in Africa, many of the wearers fell through the floors of their homes, not realizing that the floor timbers had been partly removed by termites. The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service claimed in 1963 that "with style changes the stiletto-heel problem has diminished". High heels can represent contributory negligence by the plaintiff in American personal injury cases involving slip and fall accidents. Many high heel policies in the US are related to concerns over the potential for legal claims. Some women have challenged the expectation that women